Forces of Creation
by IamErtai
Summary: The Venomian army has overrun Corneria, Fox is imprisonned, and Andross's victory is all but complete. But even as he proclaims himself emperor, three new forces enter the game.
1. Book 1: Potestas

Forces of Creation

Prologue  
  


"How do you think you did?" asked Rena as they relaxed in the cafeteria after final exams.

"I'm not sure," answered Todd, putting down his can of soda, "I did all right up until the navigation physics section, and I had to fudge a bit there. How'd you do?"

"Apart from breaking out in a cold sweat every time someone coughed, I did just fine. Now I just have to get through the flying runs tomorrow." She glanced at the fox next to her, "and we all know who'll get the high score there."

Todd blushed and shifted in his seat. "C'mon, anyone could win-"

"Your grandfather set an all-time high record on the same test, which was then broken by your father." Rena recited, "and your mother's score was only a few points behind either one."

"-and I get told about it nearly every day by at least one of the teachers." Todd finished.

"I'm just trying to rub it in." Rena apologized ruefully, shaking her head. "Listen Todd, I've been meaning to ask you something."

"I'm right here." Answered the fox, starting to take another drink before realizing the can was empty.

"Cristie was yelling at me again this morning, about you."

"Cristie is always yelling about something."

"True," she admitted. "But she said some, well, things."

"Things?"

"What exactly do plan to do with your life, Todd?"

"Oh, I don't know." He answered, "Graduate, get rich, the usual."

"And run the family business?"

"So that's what's bugging you." Todd said, smiling bitterly. "No wonder she was yelling about it."

"Well, you know Cristie." Rena admitted, laughing a little. "All last night she was saying 'your father is the head of planetary defense and on the military triad! You can't be associating with-'"

"-mercenaries?"

"Like I said," Rena repeated, without humor, "You know Cristie."

Todd paused for a long moment, his eyes distant as if he was looking at something far away. Finally he took a deep breath and said, "Do you know how we won the Venomian war?"

"Well, only the official version."

"And how my father died?"

"No, I always just assumed he was shot down or something…"

Todd paused again, and closed his eyes. "Then I'll tell you."  
  


Chapter 1  
  


"Power corrupts. Absolute power corrupts absolutely." 

–Lord Acton  
  


The panther opened his eyes slowly, and stood up even more slowly. He had a headache, travel didn't agree with him. Oh well, better find out where he was. He stretched, shook his head, and sighed. Also better find something to eat, he decided. The trip had been worse than he'd thought. He looked around for a bar, or for someone who could tell him where a bar was.

The streets were utterly deserted, and looked as if they'd been that way for some time. There were abandoned cars, cracked hunks of concrete, and papers blowing in the wind. The only objects that looked new in any way were posters attached to walls, telephone poles, doors, windows, any available surface it seemed. They all showed an ape standing astride a bilious green planet, gazing sagaciously into the horizon, and they all said, 'Your Emperor ascends today! Watch the broadcast and prove your loyalty.'  
The panther continued down the street, hoping he hadn't made a big navigational mistake. This certainly didn't seem to be where he wanted to go. It would be just great if the others had sent him back to-

"Hey you, get in here quick!"

Following the voice, he entered a doorway, went down a long hall, finally emerging in a dirty, industrial-looking café.

"Are you brainless?" said the bluejay behind the counter. "What the heck were you doing out there? Do want to get arrested?"

"Arrested?"

"Yeah, Imperial edict." He said, picking up a remote. "'All loyal citizens must display their devotion by watching and approving the coronation ceremony. All those found outside of their homes or other approved area with a television will be arrested for treachery.' Fun, huh?" He turned the TV on. "How 'bout some coffee, or something to eat? It's not like I'm gonna get any other customers today."

"Sure, thanks. It's been a long trip." The panther sat down. "My name's Victor Opprimius."

"Uh, okay," said the bird, sliding a cup of coffee and a cinnamon roll across the counter. "You can call me Pete."

Victor began eating, half watching the program on the screen.

"-and we've just received word that the Emperor is coming up to the dais now, so the ceremony should begin without any more delay, hopefully there won't be another disturbance, and… wait, here he comes." The announcer was drowned out by a flood of applause, as the ape from the posters emerged onto a balcony, an expression of joyous benevolence on his face. Several officers, generals perhaps, stood on either side of him, loaded down with various medals and insignia. There was one other figure on the platform, a fox, chained to a pillar, low down enough so that he could not stand up, but high enough so that he couldn't sit; he had to kneel.

"My loyal subjects!" the ape said, his voice echoing around the amphitheater, "Today are the cowardly wretches that once opposed my inevitable victory are subdued forever! Today the will of the Gods, manifested in me, the pinnacle of evolution, is finally complete! I rule uncontested over all Lylat, and speak to you now from my throne on the planet, the gentle orb that gave me birth, Corneria! I shall lead you to a new dawn, one of-"

"Man, that's enough of that." Pete said, turning off the set.

Victor paused in mid-chew, his eyes clouded over in thought. "Tell me," he finally said, "where is the nearest army enlistment office?"

Chapter 2  
  


Cornwall:   Pinion him like a thief, bring him before us.

Though we may not pass upon his life;

Yet our power shall do courtesy to our wrath.

Who's there? The traitor?

Regan:   Ungrateful fox, 'tis he!

-Shakespeare, _King Lear_.  
  


"Well, how are we feeling this morning?" Leon sang cheerfully as he put his suitcase down on the cell floor.

The prisoner didn't answer.

"You know," the lizard continued, "I had a wonderful idea this morning, during breakfast. I was having steamed fish, you see, and it got me thinking. I remembered when I used to go fishing with my friends, back before they renamed this place. One day, one of them stepped on a fishhook someone left behind. He tried for hours to get it out; in the end he had to go to the hospital to get it removed. So, after breakfast I stopped by an sporting goods store, and I got you a little present."

There was no answer.

"Aren't you going to try to guess what it is?"

Silence.

"You know, I've been looking forward to this for a long time." Leon whispered. "Andross wanted you kept recognizable for the cameras, but now that the broadcasts are finished, there's no reason to worry about your appearance." He lowered his voice. "It's probably lucky that I haven't done anything to you yet. By the time I'm finished not even your mother will recognize you."

He went back to where he'd left the suitcase, and opened it. Inside was a handheld power saw, an electric shock, several hypodermic needles, a coil of wire, an object the size of a phaser gun with a needle on the end, a pair of pliers, miscellaneous knives, and a shiny new box of fishhooks. Leon sighed in ecstasy.

"We've wasted enough time." he said, picking up the pliers. "Let's get started."  
  


Fara sat gloomily in the unheated cell block. She was so tired that she couldn't sleep, but even if she could sleep, she didn't know if she wanted to. If she went to sleep, the nightmares would come. She was so tired though; she leaned back on the bed and sighed, just closing her eyes for a moment, and-

-she was back on Corneria, in the evening. Fox was coming to take her out, he hadn't said where. He'd said that there was something he wanted to ask her. Then the doorbell rang, she got up and opened the door, and Fox fell forward, dead, with his face covered in his own blood.

She reeled back, a scream caught in her throat, and tripped over a chair. She got up and looked around. She was in the academy, back where she had gone to school. There was the bell, she'd be late! She dashed into the classroom, out of breath.

"Good morning, class." Said the teacher, a chameleon.

Fara looked around and realized she was the only student in the room. There was something on a table at the front of the room, something covered with a sheet.

"Today, we're doing anatomy," the teacher continued, "and, as a treat, we'll be doing a dissection." He pulled back the sheet, and Fox was lying there, bound, and gagged, and dead. The teacher picked up a scalpel, and held it out to her. "Miss Phoenix, would you care to make the first incision?"

She ran to the door, sobbing. Outside it the hall it was completely dark, all the lights were off, and there was some king of scum or fog over all the windows. She could barely see it, but there was something moving at the end of the hall. It was someone, they were coming closer, it was Fox! He was smiling at her, and coming closer. She sighed with relief and wiped her eyes, and when she looked up again, he was gone. Instead there was a black panther, and he wasn't smiling at her; he wasn't even looking at her. She heard a noise and turned around. Andross was crouched on the floor, playing with some colored marbles. The panther passed her and stopped, looking at Andross, then pulled out a dagger that glowed a lurid pale blue, lighting his face from below. He smiled and raised the knife.

Suddenly she was in a house she'd never seen before. She was wearing a wedding ring too. The door opened and a kit came into the room, barely old enough to walk.  
"Come on son." She found herself saying, "Let's go for a drive."

"No, mom." The kit said, looking genuinely frightened. "Don't get in the car."  
Fara was inclined to agree, but she couldn't seem to stop herself. She got into the car, in spite of the child's protests, and turned the key.

"No!" the kit called, as the car exploded around her.

And now she was in a vast assembly hall, full of Venomian soldiers. The room was hung with military banners and had arrangements of lilies along the sides. She walked to the front of the room, nobody noticed her. It looked like there was some kind of funeral going on. She finally reached the front of the ranks of impassive-faced soldiers, and looked at the body in the casket.

It was Fox, wearing the uniform of a Venomian general. She stumbled back, as if she'd been hit in the face, and began sobbing. Then she heard Andross' voice.

"Friends," he said, "we gather here today to pay our final respects to a great leader, a great pilot, and a great warrior. Always loyal to his planet and his emperor, he fought the great wars with us all, and did many truly heroic deeds, ridding the galaxy of such vile rebels as Falco Lombardi, William Grey, and even his own sister, when she betrayed us. Ever faithful, he served me well, and so I give him this final salute."

He pulled an air siren out of his pocket, and blew it. It got louder and louder and louder and-

-Fara woke up, still sobbing. The morning alarm was blowing; it was time to get up. She shook her head, sniffed, and got out of bed.  
  


"He was here. Definitely."

"If that's the case then he can't be too far away."

"I wouldn't count on that. He might not even be on this planet; it's at least three days since he was here."

"Which way did he go?"

"Hmm. Down the alley and out into the street it looks like."

"And then?"

"Into that bar. We'd better wait before we follow though. We don't want anyone to know about us who doesn't have to."

"I hate waiting."

"I know."  
  


Chapter 3  
  


Shylock: I have sworn that I will have my bond.

Thou hast called me dog before thou hadst cause,

Well, if I be a dog, best beware my fangs.

-Shakespeare, _The Merchant of Venice_  
  


"I wish you'd waited for me." Said Wolf O'Donnell as Leon came into the bar.

"It's not as if anything interesting happened. Nothing ever does on the first day. It'll be at least three more days before I can break him enough to be entertaining."

"I don't know why you get to do all the fun jobs." Wolf grumbled, ordering another beer. "You know what I did today? Escorted a prisoner transport." He snorted. "Don't know what I thought I was protecting them from."

"Well, you can't deny that I've a talent for it."

"Hell, that's not it!" said Wolf, pounding on the counter. "I just wanted to get first crack at him, you know, when he's still fighting back. I've wanted to torture Fox ever since I first saw him. And I wouldn't need any fancy hooks or saws or brain whatevers, either. All I'd need is my knife."

"If you ask me, that's probably why Andross sent you away." Leon sipped the red wine he'd ordered. "He wants Fox to live a long, unhappy life. Torture is a very delicate process, producing the best results when the operator has had no prior connection with the victim. I don't think Andross trusts you with Fox. I wouldn't."

"You want to see something?" Wolf said. He reached to his belt and placed a small knife on the table. "I've had this knife ever since I joined, but I never used it before. Read that." He said, pointing to printing that ran across one side.

"Uh," said Leon, squinting, "Se ah-tethnat ko durtia-, Wolf, what is this?" the chameleon said. "This isn't something you bought off the street is it?"

"That's Lupine." Wolf took another drink, and blinked. "It says 'For my worst enemy, who was my best friend.' I had it made the day I quit the Cornerian Army."

Leon opened his mouth to make a smart remark, then changed his mind and closed it again.

"When I was in the Cornernian Academy I was always ignored, the only time anyone talked to me was to tell me to get out of the way. That changed when I met Fox. He paid attention to me. And because he was popular, I was too."

"And how long did that last?"

"Till we graduated. I realized everyone just thought of me as one McCloud's little group. Whenever they talked to me, they were always looking over my shoulder at him. To them, I was just an extension of him, as if I didn't exist when he wasn't there. That's really why I defected. That's why I need to be better than him. That's why I need to kill him."

"That's it?"

"You don't get it! I've been waiting for this for years!" Wolf yelled, unsteadily. "This is what I've been living for."

"Hey, listen." Leon said. "I've known you a long time, this isn't the first time you've been like this." He looked at the empty bottles surrounding his team captain. "How many of those have you had anyway?"

Wolf shrugged. "A few."

"I wouldn't worry. You'll still be here tomorrow and so will Fox, and I've got an excellent idea involving a soldering iron." He finished his wine and stood up. "Don't stay too long, or tomorrow you'll be too hungover to watch."  
  


"Yeah, I remember that guy." Pete said, "said his name was Victor Opri- Opp- Opri-something. Showed up, oh, a couple weeks ago, maybe. Kinda weird, if you ask me." _like some other people I could mention_ he thought.

"Can you describe him?" asked the squirrel unsmilingly.

Pete considered for a moment. He was not accustomed to answering questions about customers he had all but forgotten, especially not to strange squirrels. And when he said strange squirrels, he meant strange. His inquisitor was wearing all black, black shirt, black jeans, black boots, black gloves, and, weirdest of all, a black cape. As if that wasn't enough, he was accompanied by a mink with similar taste in clothing. Nor did it help that they had come asking at two AM.

"It was a big black panther, about six and a half foot tall." Pete yawned, making no attempt to conceal it.

"Did he say where he was going?" asked the mink.

"He asked the way to the army enlistment office." He said, yawning again. This seemed to be disheartening news, and the weird guests exchanged a worried glance.

Pete shifted uncomfortably. "Uh, is there anything else? Cause I've gotta close up or I'll get booked for violating curfew." Pete didn't seem to mind that his guests would be arrested for leaving.

"That's all," said the squirrel, "thanks for your help."  
  


"Well, now what?"

"Calm down."

"But he could be anywhere if he's in the military."

"No, not anywhere. Only somewhere where the military is."

"And that is?"

"Not at all difficult to discover."  
  


Chapter 4

"Their religion was one of despair; so how could they understand that their foes could hope even when their fortunes were hopeless? Their religion was one of force and of fear; so how could they understand that men can still despise fear even if they are subdued by force?"

-G. K. Chesterton, _The Everlasting Man_.  
  


Katterina Tyler Monroe pinched herself to see if she would wake up. She didn't.

"You okay?" came Bill's voice over the radio.

"Yeah," she said, bringing her mind back to reality. "You ready?"

"As ready as I'll ever be," he answered.

"Uh, Bill?" she asked.

"Yeah?"

"Are you absolutely sure we should do this?"

"Well," he replied, "We have to do it sometime. We won't get our homes back by hiding, and we won't win a thing by playing it safe." There was a pause. "Katt?"

"I'm okay," she said, trying to communicate a conviction she didn't feel. "Let's go."  
  


Commander Evan Meniran slumped down behind his desk. It looked like it was going to be another thrilling day as imperial governor of the third western para-tropical zone of Katina.

Just for something to do, he buzzed his secretary and asked for the daily reports. She brought them in. Well, he thought, that was invigorating. He decided he might as well look at them. Well, there they were, all daily and reported. Now what?

I know, he thought, I'll read them. Wow, won't that be exciting. Why, I can barely keep from dancing around the room with the sheer exhilaration of it. Oh look, here's the first one. What does it say? Why, it says that the camp production is on schedule. Oh joy, he grumbled. It's so amazing that, even though the camp's been on schedule ever I got stuck running the damn thing, it's still on schedule. How wonderful!

Oh, here's one from the territorial occupation troop management office. Why, whatever can it say? It says to expect another division of troops under the command of Lieutenant Opprimus to arrive today! Hooray! The same troops that were scheduled to arrive today, will, in fact, ARRIVE TODAY! I'm so excited I think I'll pass out!

He looked at the clock on his desk, hoping against hope that it would be time for lunch, or an inspection, or at least time enough for a coffee break. He'd only been in his office for three minutes.

Cmdr. Meniran sank back into his chair, on the verge of tears. Oh, if only something, anything, would happen, he prayed silently. Anything at all.

His prayer was answered.  
  


A handful of jets coasted low over the Katinian horizon, headed for a provincial labor camp. They dropped into a small ravine, moving slowly and silently toward the camp.  
Katt struggled to keep from screaming. She hated being in charge, being the leader, being the one everyone counted on. If she'd had a choice, she would never have fought this way. She preferred to fight as a shadow, appearing unexpectedly, striking quickly, and vanishing again. To come in straight, right in the open, and to have to stay there while the camp was liberated… she just didn't know. Breathe, she reminded herself, don't think about it, just do it and try not to think about it. And then they arrived, and she was flying, not for money, but for her life.

"Take out those turrets!" Bill shouted. Seven pilots did that, the rest braced themselves. Swarms of invader jets rose to meet them, beat back in a few places by nova bombs from Bill and Katt. The others mobbed the attackers, trying to fire on them from behind. She found herself firing almost without aiming, as if by instinct. Two, three, four enemies fell, and she sent more to join them.

"Phase two pilots, land and attack." Bill shouted.

Half of the planes dropped to the ground, and their pilots jumped out, fully geared for a ground assault. They scattered into the base complex, preparing to liberate the slaves and seize supplies.

Katt came out of her fierce trance and looked around, in time to see another venom pilot go down under a deadly rain of her own lasers. There were only six enemy fighters left. Bills lasers flashed, and only five were left.

"We're winning," she said, "We're actually winning."

"I know. Let's keep it that way," was Bill's answer. "All pilots, land and prepare to storm."  
  


"How are we doing, Katt?" Bill whispered into his com.

"We're doing fine," she replied from the main room where she'd hacked into the security system, "And you don't need to whisper."

"How many enemies left?"

"None, we won, it's over, and you can stop sneaking around and being stealthy." She paused. "Where are you, anyway?"

"Right outside the command room, why?"

"Well come in."

"In?"

"I'm in the command room!"

"Oh," Bill said, opening the door and switching off his radio. "Now what?"

"Well, I sent a bunch of the liberated workers to the caves with most of the supplies, so all we have to do now is get everyone else out and then blow the place."

"Okay, how will we do that?" he asked, moving around to look at the screen with her.

"That's easy. We need charges at seven key locations-"

"Hello? Are you receiving me? Anyone? Hello?" said the com.

"Uh, receiving you clearly." Bill said carefully, picking it up.

"Oh, good, I finally found the right frequency. This is Lieutenant Victor Opprimus of the Venomian Army, and I think you'll be interested in what I have to say."

"What's that?" Bill answered, getting worried.

"Simply this; there are few persons here with me that I think are friends of yours. It would be a shame if something were to happen to them."

"What?!"

"Surrender."

"Surrender? Are you insane? We'll never submit to-"

Katt took the com from him. "And if we don't?"

"Well then," the Venomian answered, "Meet Anna. Anna is an armadillo, about four years old and quite charming. Say hello, Anna."

"What's going on? Where's mommy? Who- mphh!" came a little girl's frightened voice.

"That's enough. And now Anna has to go on a trip. A one way trip, I'm afraid."

A shot echoed over the radio. Katt looked up in horror.

"Once again, In the name of His Ultimacy Emperor Andross, I demand you surrender yourselves and your forces to me."

"You- you-" Bill stuttered, unable to form a whole sentence.

"Hmm, still unsure?" Victor asked. "Let me introduce you to Kevin, a nine year old oriole. You have five seconds, four, three, two, one."

Katt winced and a second shot burst out of the com.

"Bill-" she began.

"We can't give in! We can't! He's probably bluffing."

"Can we take that chance?"

"Moving right along," the officer continued, "We have a beautiful baby otter, who can't be more than five months old. Oh, and to judge by her expression, that other otter over there is her mother. How tragic it would be if she had to watch her baby daughter die through your fault. So sad, isn't it? Surrender in five, four, three-"

"Stop!" Bill shouted. "Alright, we surrender! You win. You win."

"Of course I do. Please order the rest of your rebels to lay down their arms and surrender, and then step outside with your hands in the air. Have a nice day." He turned off the com, and watched the front door of the compound. When two figures came out with their hands in the air, he laughed. "How touching. They've given their freedom for your daughter's life. The good are always so easy to manipulate. Here, you may come get your child now. I won't shoot her."

The grateful mother ran forward and snatched the baby. She turned away and bent down over her daughter, so she didn't see Victor nod to his troops. The last thing she heard was twenty laser rifles firing, onto her and her baby.

Commander Meniran crawled out from the cupboard in his office. He looked around nervously, then cautiously advanced another step.

"You can come out now sir, they're all gone." Said a panther standing in the doorway.

"Oh, man," Evan said, almost fainting with relief, "am I glad to see you! Lieutenant Opprimus, right? You beat the rebels, then?"

"Yes, we won. Unfortunately, the brave Commander Meniran was killed in the fighting."

"Huh? What are you talking about? I'm right here, I'm certainly not dead."

"No, you were killed in the fighting." The panther said, pulling out a gun, and Evan stumbled back with three smoking holes in his chest.

"There, you see, I was right. You were killed." He walked to the doorway, paused, and turned back. "I'm always right in the end, you know. Goodbye."

Chapter 5  
  


Then Sauron laughed, and he mocked Gorlim, and revealed to him that he had seen only a phantom devised by wizardry to entrap him; for his wife was dead. "Nonetheless I will grant thy prayer," said Sauron, "and thou shalt go to her, and be set free of my service." Then he put him cruelly to death.

-J. R. R. Tolkien, _The Silmarillion_.  
  


"Leon, that was beautiful." Wolf said, sighing. "You're an artist."

"Yes," the tormentor admitted, "it was a good session, wasn't it?" They were relaxing in Leon's room after paying a visit to Fox's cell. The chameleon looked shrewdly at his commander. "Still upset that you didn't get to go first?"

"No, just watching is enough. Man, if only I could watch that forever."

"What part was the best, would you say?"  
"Oh, the end, when he thought it was over and closed his eyes, and then you started up the saw again. That expression was worth millions." Wolf suddenly stopped laughing and looked worried, "Hey, Leon."

"Yes?"

"This won't kill him will it? I mean, I'll still get-"

"No, no, I'm not interested in death, only in dying. McCloud will still be around for you to slaughter, never fear." He pulled off his blood-spattered shirt and replaced it with a clean one. "You'll still get to break his body, I just want to break his soul first."

Fox hung, manacled to the wall in his cell, half in and half out of delirium. He wheezed with every breath, coughing when a drop of blood ran down his face and into his mouth. His eyelids were not fully closed, and constantly flickered, as if he was looking rapidly in all directions.

Fox didn't see the dungeon, the cell, or the manacles. He was floating helplessly in oceans of pain, made all the worse by the sure knowledge that it would end only when his tormentors wanted it to end. Perhaps he had thought of escape for the first few days of his imprisonment, but now all he wanted was to die, and at least cheat Leon of a few more weeks of watching him writhe. He slumped down in the clamps, feeling the life slowly draining from his body.

"Fox," said a voice, very close, almost in his ear. "Hold on, son."

Fox hadn't cried at any point during the torture, it was the one way in which he had disappointed Leon. But he cried now. "Dad?" was all he could say.

"Yes, I'm here." The voice said. It echoed and reverberated in a way that made it impossible to tell whether it came from miles away or from the other side of the room.

"Then am I dead?"

"Almost. You're standing on the very brink of death."

"Is, is mom…?"

"She's here too, Fox." The voice said, a little heavily, now, "She misses you, we both do." There was a pause. "I came to tell you something, and to give you a choice. The only thing keeping you alive now is yourself. All you need to do is to stop fighting it and you can slip away, come with me now, and forget this forever."

"Now?"

"Now. We can go as soon as you're ready."

Fox swallowed. He felt dizzy. He felt the pain Leon had given him draining out of him, he seemed to be rising upward, as if he were suddenly weightless.

"All you have to do is come with me, and we'll be together again, forever. You, and your mother, and me." The voice paused. "We're both very proud of you, son."

"Proud?" Fox asked, almost bitterly, "Of a failure like me?"

"A failure? What did you fail?" smiled the voice.

"I failed you," Fox whispered. "I was too weak, Andross won, and now I'm dying alone, without even anyone to carry on after me."

"No, you haven't failed. Even as we speak, there are people resisting Andross; more and more every day. They're doing it for you, son. You're their inspiration."

Fox hung his head; he wanted more than anything to go, to say he was ready, but something stopped him, a sense of duty, maybe. There was something he still needed to do. "What's my other choice?" he finally asked.

"To stay here, and fight. Andross is winning, but he hasn't won; not yet. You still have a chance, you can still win."

"I can't." Fox gasped, finally giving in to his tears.

"Don't cry. You haven't failed, not yet." Fox looked up, his eyes were still blurred with tears, but he could see there was someone standing next to him, with a strong light directly behind them. 

Fox hesitated for a moment, and then swallowed hard. "All right; I'll stay, I'll fight. What do I have to do?"

"That's my son," said the figure, "just hold out, keep enduring, and don't give in. Help will come."

"I will," he said, "Thank you, father."

"There. That wasn't hard at all."

"What are you talking about?"

"I just found him."

"What? Where? How?"

"Well if you weren't paying so much attention to your breakfast, you might have taken a look at the newspaper I was reading."

"And I would have seen what?"

"The headline; 'Rebels attack factory. Brave officer Victor Opprimus hero of the hour.'"

"You think that's him?"

"It says Victor Oppri-something; and it's in the military; and it's ambitious. That's three out of three."

"Not bad. What's our next move?"

"Well what's the first sentence about?"

"Uh, rebels."

"Exactly."  
  


Chapter 6  
  


Banquo: And oftentimes, to win us to our harm

The instruments of darkness tell us truths,

Win us with honest trifles, to betray us

In deepest consequence.

-Shakespeare, _MacBeth._  
  


Art Canuno, Andross' valet and personal assistant, was puzzled by his Emperor's mood. Being the valet of an insane megalomaniac scientist provided ample opportunity for studying various moods, and Art had seen many over the years; fear, rage, amusement, Andross had exhibited them all at some point. But this one was new, it was as if the Emperor couldn't decide weather he was awake or asleep.

"Art?" he finally said.

"Yes, sir?" replied the penguin, setting down the breakfast tray.

"Do you believe in omens?"

"Sir?"

"Dreams, visions, prophecies," the Emperor mused. "Do you believe they can tell the future?"

"I confess I had never given the matter much thought, sir."

"Really?"

"I am afraid not, sir. Will you be requiring anything else, sir?"

"Hmm, get me my telephone book, and lay out a the green suit."

"Very good, sir."

Art opened the wardrobe, while his master looked in the newspapers. "Have you seen the stories about this lieutenant?"

"The matter has not escaped my notice, sir"

"I wonder, perhaps…"

"Sir?"

"I asked you about omens, didn't I?"

"Yes, sir." Art answered, wondering where this was going.

"Well, I had this dream, about him." Andross explained, gesturing toward the newspaper. "I saw him fighting with McCloud, and winning. And then he, well, he opened a door, and was about to show me what was on the other side, and then I woke up." He sipped at his coffee. "It was disturbing."

"Most assuredly so, sir."

"Oh my-, Fox, what did they do to you?!"

Fox raised his head slowly, "Bill? You aren't just another dream, are you?"

Bill didn't answer; he was staring openmouthed at the network of cuts and burns that covered his friend's arms, face, and chest. He began moving his mouth as if he wanted to speak, but couldn't remember any words. "How did you survive all this?" he finally said, blinking in shock.

Fox didn't answer. He didn't know.

"Where have you been?" Leon grumbled as he slammed open Wolf's bedroom door. "I've been waiting for you for two and a half hours!"

"Huh?" Wolf shouted, waking up. "What time is it?"

"Ten thirty." remarked Leon dryly.

"What are you doing here?" Wolf yawned, rubbing his eyes.

"To see if you were dead, as I was beginning to suspect," Leon threw open the blinds. "You usually don't forget our appointments."

Wolf winced at the sudden light and tried to focus. He had a terrible headache. "Sorry, I was out late last night. Celebrating."

"So I figured," the chameleon sighed. He'd been particularly looking forward to this morning. "You heard about Grey and Monroe being captured, I assume?"

Wolf got out of bed and pulled on a shirt. "Yeah, that's what I was celebrating."

"Well, I managed to get Grey transferred here, and put him in the same cell as McCloud."

"Oh." said Wolf, realizing what he'd missed. "Damn, I'm sorry Leon." He blinked and shook his head. "Well, just let me take a quick shower and then we'll go down."

"Not now, you're too late! I've got work to do! Some of us don't spend all our time either at the gym or the bar or some point in between." Leon rolled his eyes in a way only a chameleon can. "Look, have a couple aspirin and a cup of coffee, and I'll meet you down there after lunch."

"Thanks man, I owe you."

"Don't mention it." Leon grumbled as he left.

"Haven't you found it yet?"

"Be patient, hacking a computer isn't like strolling through a park."

"But they both require time, which we are rapidly running out of."

"As if you're the one who should talk about that- wait, I found him. Level 6, cell number 14.9"

"Okay, hurry. Grab your fancy thing and let's go."

"It's called a laptop, not a 'fancy thing.'"

"Whatever. Hurry up."

Wolf stepped out of the elevator at level 6 of the prison. He flashed his ID to the guard, who handed him a message.

'Wolf, the meeting ran long. Be there as soon as I can. Let this be a lesson to you. Ha Ha: -Leon.'

He cursed under his breath. Oh well, there was nothing he could do about it, he fumed as he walked to the end of row 14. He'd have to learn not to get so drunk when he was-

"If you'd gotten better directions, we wouldn't be lost!" someone shouted.

"Who says we are lost? I bet it's right down here." Said a second voice, a female's "See? Here it is."

"And how, pray tell, are we supposed to get through that?"

Wolf paused for a moment, then came around the corner. There were two people standing in front of Fox's cell, dressed all in black, and both looking very annoyed. The female, a mink, looked up for a moment, then turned to her partner, a squirrel.

"Here comes someone. Ask him."

"Why do I have to ask him? You do it."

"I already got us this far."

"Yeah," the squirrel said under his breath, "and a fat lot of good that did us." He turned to Wolf, who was becoming more surprised by the moment. "How do we get in there?" he demanded, pointing at Fox's cell. "Little miss genius over there didn't think to get us fake ID."

"F-fake ID?" Wolf managed to splutter.

"Yeah."

"Why do you need fake ID?" said Wolf, feeling as if he'd blundered into someone else's hallucination.

"To open the cells so we can get, uh, get… I keep forgetting his name."

"Fox McCloud." The mink said.

"That's it. We're going to help him escape."

"What did you say?" asked Wolf, alarm bells ringing in the back of his mind.

"Escape. You know, evade, breakout, flee, elude, run away."

"What?" Wolf nearly screamed. He grabbed the mink and held a knife up to her throat. "Don't move!"

"What are you doing?" asked the squirrel, in a puzzled voice.

"Put your hands up!" growled Wolf, pushing the mink, who was unarmed, behind him.

"Okay," he responded, doing it. After a moment, he put them back down. "Was something supposed to happen?" he asked.

"Get those hands back up, or she's dead."

"Who? Her?" the squirrel laughed. "She's in no danger."

"Shut up and drop your guns, now or-" suddenly a tingling sensation spread over his whole body, his hands began shaking, his head spun, and just before he blacked out he saw the floor swing up to hit his face.

Bill watched as the mink took Wolf's ID card and deactivated the lasers on the cell door. She came in and started unfastening Fox from the wall.

"I didn't know you could do that." The squirrel said.

"It's easy," the mink said, "I pinched him, right on the back of the neck where the spinal cord is near the surface." She undid the last of the clasps. "It works on almost anyone. Could you help me please, instead of relaxing there?"

"No, I'm busy." The squirrel answered. He dragged Wolf into the cell, and then clamped him up where Fox had been.

"Wha?" Wolf moaned, coming to.

"Be quiet." Snapped the squirrel, stuffing a gag in Wolf's mouth.

"Here," the mink said, handing Bill Wolf's shirt, then his pants, then his eye patch, "Put those on."

"Huh?"

"You're a husky right? A little make up, the right walk, and the right clothes, you'd be his twin."

"You'll be taking the prisoner up to Leon's quarters-" continued the mink.

"-and he'll drop into the ventilation shaft on his way? Not bad." Finished the squirrel.

"What? Hey, uh, where should I go?" asked Bill, finding the situation entirely outside his control.

"Don't worry. We'll find you." The mink said. "Get going."

"Limp more." Bill whispered.

"I'm trying." Fox whispered back.

The guard snapped quickly to attention as he saw Wolf O'Donnell stride fiercely past, dragging a pitiful prisoner behind him. A few yards further on, Bill began breathing again.  
"This can't be happening. I must be dreaming." Bill said, half to himself. Fox groaned.

"Careful. Don't look so dazed. And abuse me more."

They began to slow down as they neared Starwolf's quarters. Bill made for a large vent on the wall, kneeling down and pulling out a pry-bar the squirrel had given him.

"Wolf," said a voice, "what are you doing?"

Bill whirled and brought the pry-bar down on Andrew's head, felling him. The monkey stumbled, then shook his head and said, "Hey, you aren't- Help! Hel-mph!"

Fox smacked the back of Andrew's head against the wall, then collapsed from the exertion. "Ouch." He said.

"You shouldn't have done that, you're still-"

"Later. Let's get out of here."

"How'd he know I wasn't Wolf?" Bill said, helping Fox into the shaft.

Fox studied his friend for a moment, then spoke. "Your patch is on the wrong eye." He said.

They went about half a mile, stopping every so often when Fox needed to rest. The squirrel was waiting for them, and took them out through the air conditioner, where there was a ship waiting with the mink at the controls.

They lifted off unchallenged by any enemies, and turned toward open space. Fox exhaled heavily. He was out.

"You okay?" Bill said, sitting down next to him.

"I'm fine." Fox said, and closed his eyes "Just think, when I wake up tomorrow I'm not going to have fishhooks under my skin, soldering irons on my face, or a power saw on my ankle." He leaned back against the hull. "Thanks for the escape. I wasn't going to last much longer."

"Thanks? I thought it was your idea."

"No, I've been in than cell for weeks. I wasn't me."

"But then who…?" Bill trailed off, and glanced at the cockpit.

The squirrel was leaning in the doorway, watching them with an amused expression. When Bill looked at him, his smile broadened.

"Uh, I almost forgot to thank you, Mr.… uh, what's your name anyway?"

The squirrel's smile became positively uncontrolled; he seemed to have reached record heights of smugness.

"You can call her," he said, nodding in the direction of the pilot, "Mind. And me," he smiled again, "Soul."

Leon stopped suddenly just outside cell number 14.9, with his mouth hanging open.

"Mphhh! Mrrhh, mhh mnnrgh! Mrphhhh!" said Wolf, who was wearing only his underwear. He was firmly gagged and fastened to the wall where Fox was supposed to be.

Chapter 7

"Well it's like this," he said. "What have we got to do? We have to invent a sort of life where men can live and be as secure as possible. I've been thinking about the drains, under London are miles and miles of them. Then there's cellars, vaults, stores, and the railways and subways. And we form a band—able bodied, clean-minded men."  
-H. G. Wells, _The War of the Worlds.  
  
_

The airlock on the derelict station opened slowly, admitting what appeared to be a small Venomian transport ship. A squirrel with a black cape got out, followed by a dog and a fox. "Careful here," said the dog, "watch that step."

"Bill, I don't need that much help." Fox protested, "I'm just a little weak, that's all."

Mind stepped down behind them, closing the hatch door as she went. "You should be safe here." She said.

"Where are we, anyway?"

"Meteo." answered Soul. "This is an abandoned science station, I don't know what they were studying."

"We use it as a supply base." Explained the mink, "The nice thing is that scans don't reach here, they're blocked by energy fluctuations from the wormholes and trace elements in the asteroids."

"Yeah, what she said." Said the squirrel, opening the doors. On the other side was a very shabby-looking room, with a couple of chairs, a worn sofa, and a folding table by way of furnishings. One wall was covered with wires and circuit boards, all connected to a keyboard and monitor. 

"The bathroom's that way," Mind pointed, "and there's a bed in the next room."

"Thank you." said Fox, "I am kind of tired."

"Keep on fighting, son. She needs you."

Sixteen hours later, Fox woke up. He was in a small, narrow, dark room. For a moment he panicked, thinking he was back in the cell. But then he realized that he was lying on a mattress, there was a door to the room and not bars. Bill was asleep in a folding chair in the corner. Fox sat up. Every muscle in his body felt as if it had been removed, put through a meat grinder, and then reinserted. He was glad to be feeling so much better.  
He came into the main room, where there was a smell of cooking coming from a small propane stove, where Soul was cooking- well something. It was light brown and was in a frying pan, but other than that there wasn't much that could be figured out for certain.

Mind was sitting at the electronic wall, typing steadily. "Good morning." She said.

"What time is it?" Fox yawned.

"one-thirty A.M." she answered, "That is, technically, morning."

"Here, have something to eat." The squirrel said, setting a plateful of whatever it was he'd cooked down on an upturned metal crate.

"Thanks." Fox said, looking uncertainly at the tan mound he'd been served. He shivered, "Hey, do you have a spare shirt somewhere?"

"Probably." Soul answered, returning to his stove.

Fox pulled up a smaller crate and began eating. It didn't taste bad, but it didn't taste good, either. It didn't taste much like anything, something between the taste of bread and milk. It was very filling.

"What's that?" said Bill, from the doorway.

"Breakfast." Fox answered.

"Oh you're awake too? Good." Mind said. "You ought to see this." She tapped the keyboard and the wildly scrolling letters on the screen stopped, halting on a few lines. 

While you were asleep, I hacked into the Imperial mainframe-"

"Don't you mean the Venomian mainframe?" Bill interrupted.

"No," said Mind, looking very hard at them for a moment, "the imperial mainframe."  
"Anyway, we found a whole bunch of interesting stuff." She continued, moving aside.  
  
access mainframe command  
passquery=undefined/12.3~  
verifying DMI pool data…  
passcode accepted  
welcome to imperial mainframe!  
http;//-mainframe.govr/search  
command_engage  
searching…  
host found. Waiting for reply…  
Online. Please enter area of enquiry.  
  


Corneria- 5 known  
Titania- 1 known  
Fortuna- 3 known  
Macbeth- 0 known  
Katina- Indeterminate  
Venom- 2 known  
  


"These are all the rebel organizations that they know about." She said, pointing. "Once we get in touch with these, they should be able to help us find any others that there might be. And here's info on significant prisoners."  
  
  
Imperial Venomian Palace, Venom; Gnrl, Christopher R. Pepper  
Antione Saulinars Memorial Prison, Corneria; Peppy Hare  
Fortunan Detainment Facility; Falco Lombardi  
Camp #14FN; Slippy Toad   
Camp #8MCB; Katt Monroe  
  


"There's two things I want you to take a look at. Peppy is in the same prison that you were, Fox, so we can-" Mind began, but Fox interrupted her.

"You found Falco and Peppy and the others?"

"Yep." said Soul.

"As if you did anything," the mink grumbled at him.

"Can you find anyone?"

"If they're in the network, I can locate them."

"Okay," said Fox, stepping forward and typing a name.

Mind looked at it and then began typing at an exponential rate. Half a minute later she stopped and said, "Fara Phoenix, Camp #37VN."

"Okay, now try 'Rita LaShette'," said Bill.

"No data available." She declared after another minute of typing.

"Are you sure you spelled it right?" Asked the squirrel.

She just glared at him, then turned to Fox, "The reason I showed that to you is because we want to ask you something." Mind said a few moments later. "You see, we helped you escape for a reason."

Fox looked up. _Here it comes,_ he thought.

"We're, well, we're looking for someone," she began explaining. "And we have good reason to believe that he is somewhere in the ranks of this Andross person's army. Probably fairly high up." She paused. "We have many ways of confronting this, person, but in my opinion the most likely to succeed is to destroy that network on which the army he has attached himself to relies."

"Simply put," Soul interrupted, "We're going to have a rebellion."

"And you want me to lead it." Fox groaned.

"Yes."

There was a long pause. Finally Fox began laughing quietly. "You two sound like me about a year ago. You see, I had a little rebellion of my own back then. And do you know what I won?" he asked, his voice dropping. He held out his arms, displaying the scars laced over his chest. "I won these. I failed. Badly. Because no matter how clever my plans were or how daring my exploits were, I was still the weak underdog." He looked away. "The weak lose. Period."

"No." said Soul, his voice suddenly hard.

"You didn't fail by not being strong enough." Mind said matter-of-factly, "You failed by not being clever or daring enough."

Fox didn't answer. Bill shifted nervously, feeling as if he didn't belong in this discussion.

"You've got to keep fighting." The squirrel said. He glanced over at the screen, where the words 'Fara Phoenix, Camp #37VN' still sat patiently, "She needs you."

"All right." Fox said, swallowing heavily. He didn't have to look to know who 'she' was. "I'll do it."  
  
Chapter 8  
  


…that is not love

Which alters when it alteration finds,

Or bends with the remover to remove.

Oh no, it is an ever fixe'd mark,

That looks on tempests and is never shaken

-Shakespeare, _Sonnet 116  
  
_

"Hey kitty, wake up." Said the guard.

Katt opened her eyes and slid off the hard bench. She glanced at the prison window; it was totally black outside, with a few stars showing. "Wha- What is it?" she yawned.

"Prisoner transfer." The guard explained, opening the cell and putting a pair of handcuffs on her. Dang, she thought. "You're going up to the top." The soldier continued, oblivious to her thoughts.

"The top?"

"Yep. Prison with all the dangerous rebels and stuff." He grinned. "Same prison as the Starfox scum." He pushed her ahead impatiently and began whistling a popular tune off-key. She didn't listen.

The same prison as Falco…

She didn't know whether to be sorry or glad.

As it turned out, she was sorry.

"Let me get this straight," Andross said, trying to keep from screaming, "you're telling me that some 'cool people' helped McCloud escape?"

"Yes sir." Wolf answered in a very small voice.

"And that these cool people stole your uniform and ID card and gave them to Grey, who took McCloud out?"

"Presumably." Wolf said.

"And on their way out, McCloud managed to beat you up, in spite of the fact that for nearly a month he's been on starvation rations and torture every day."

"But Uncle…" whined Andrew.

"Shut up." The Emperor said, and then turned to Wolf, "and then the 'cool people' evaporated, did they?"

"Well, I'm afraid I don't know that. I was locked up in McCloud's cell."

"And that's where you'll be again if you don't find these 'cool people' and apprehend them." Andross shouted. "Go! And if anyone asks, the official story is that McCloud is dead."  
The Starwolf team left the throne room; Wolf angry that he'd been humiliated, Leon puzzled that Wolf had been humiliated, Pigma relieved that he hadn't been yelled at, and Andrew whimpering because he had.

A black panther wearing a commander's uniform was standing at the secretary's desk as they left. "His Imperial Ultimacy will see you in a moment." She was saying.

"This is not fair." Wolf fumed at Leon as they went back to their quarters. "I didn't have to take any of this crap when we were pirating together!"

"That's because you were the captain," his second reminded him, "but all the crew had to take whatever you gave them, didn't they?" Wolf growled in reply. Leon grinned, knowing that meant his leader was feeling better. "I'm going down to the cells," he continued, "Feel free to tag along."

"The bird, I assume?"

"Yes." Leon breathed, turned the end of the word into a low reptilian hiss. "Falco and I go back a long way. It's time to get reacquainted, I think."

The guard frog-marched Katt down the corridor. I have no idea why they bothered moving me, she thought, this looks exactly like the other prison. They stopped in front of cell #14.9 where they were shortly joined by Leon wearing an ingratiating expression.

"Ah, Miss Monroe!" he said, he seemed very pleased about something. "So good of you to join us. Let me introduce you to our other guest." He continued, turning to the cell.

Falco was clamped securely to the wall, which was covered with bloodstains. Katt swallowed. She didn't want to think how much blood would be required to make that many marks.

"Oh, I wouldn't worry about it." Consoled Leon, seemingly reading her thoughts, "most of that is from Fox." He laughed. "I only started on Lombardi here last night, he should last a nice long time. A couple of months, maybe." The chameleon laughed again and opened the cell door.

Falco looked up dazedly as he heard the bars of his cell open. Leon was standing in front of him, and someone else was standing just outside, he couldn't make out who it was. He thought for a moment that it was Katt, but that was impossible. He decided he was hallucinating.

"You might as well make yourself comfortable, Miss Monroe," said Leon's voice, "we're likely to be here for some time, or at least until Wolf arrives with the- Aha! Here you are!"

Falco shook his head trying to bring himself out of the shocked daze he'd woken up into. Wolf was tying Katt; yes she was really there, to folding chair opposite from him. He gagged her firmly then stood aside, shifting uneasily. "Uh, Leon?" he said.

"Yes?"

"Are you sure about, well, about this?" the commander asked, glancing form Falco to Katt and back.

"Quite." Leon grinned. "I'm sure Ms. Monroe wouldn't want to miss the entertainment." He reached into his suitcase and turned to Falco. "I'll ask you again, Who helped Fox escape?"

Falco closed his eyes slowly. "I don't know."

"I'm sorry," he heard Leon hiss, over the drone of a power saw being turned on, "I'm afraid that's the wrong answer." The saw came closer.

Katt screamed around her gag.

"Leon-" Wolf began.

"Not now. I've got an appointment. We'll talk later."

Wolf followed his copilot for a few steps, then stopped. What he had to say could wait, if he was going to say it at all.

He slumped down in the bar, wondering why he was so depressed. Ever since the war ended, he'd been more and more unhappy. Andross ignored him now, not even bother to give him sham missions. He hadn't flown in weeks. Watching Leon with the prisoners helped, but now it was starting not to feel right either, it felt like someone or something was looking over his shoulder. And then there was that creepy squirrel and his girlfriend (or whatever she was) that really bothered him. And now Leon torturing Katt, which he just didn't like somehow, and Andross blaming him for Fox's escape. Wolf sighed. Life had been much simpler during the war.

He took a deep pull of his beer. Oh well, at least there was one thing that could always make him feel better.

  
Chapter 9  
  


"Where have you been?" asked Bigwig. "And where's Fiver? Wasn't he with you?"

"Fiver's with Hazel," said Blackberry. "Hazel's alive. He's been wounded but he won't die."

"He's alive?" said Bigwig.

-Richard Adams, _Watership Down_.

Four Protector-class Cornerian fighters cut through the outer atmosphere of Aquas, then dropped quietly to about twenty feet from the surface. The sun was just showing over the horizon, and a silver mist wandered over the water that the ships skimmed.

Fox was a bit nervous. It had been years since he'd flown one of these, and even then he'd never flown one outside of training. He had gone straight from the academy to the Arwing cockpit.

Bill was just as nervous, though not for the same reason. He normally flew a modified protector anyway, so he had no reason to be concerned about his ship. But he was worried about what they were going to do, he had to admit that.

As usual, Mind and Soul gave no indication of their thoughts, and if they were the slightest bit concerned, they concealed it.

Fox's com buzzed, and then the squirrel's voice came over it. "You're sure your sister will have your ships?" he asked.

"She should." He answered cautiously. "I had her stash them before we tried our last raid, so as long as she hasn't been found they should still be fine."

"You think that there is a possibility that she has been found, then?" said Mind.  
Fox shrugged. "I doubt it. She'd never let anything happen to the GreatFox, she's even more devoted to Dad's memory than I am." He began to feel better as he talked. "I suppose the only way she could be found is if they went over the entire planet inch by inch. And they don't even know what planet to go over."

"We shouldn't have any trouble, then." Soul concluded.

"You're sure of this, are you?" Andross said.

"Not totally. Enough." Answered Commander Opprimus.

"I don't mind telling you, this LaShette character has been a nuisance in the past." Andross said, looking at the report again. "And this does seem to prove that she's on Aquas." The emperor looked ant Victor piercingly. "If you're right, I'd say you're in line for another promotion. General, perhaps."

The panther smiled ingratiatingly. "Thank you very much, sir."

"They said on the news that you were dead. Figures they were lying." Rita said as she opened the docking bay.

"Hmm." Said Fox, not really listening.

"I mean, I knew that they wouldn't have killed you so soon, and so I figured that if they said you were dead it must just be a PR scam to squelch rumors that you had escaped and-"

"Yes, Rita, thank you." Concluded Fox, moving toward his fighter.

"Uh, I was wondering," began Soul, "If you're Fox's sister, why do you have a different last name?"

"Well, I'm not really his sister. I was abandoned by my real parents, see, and Fox's parents adopted me, so-"

_Thank you,_ Fox thought.

"All systems running at optimum performance."

"Great job, ROB." Fox grinned, "It's good to see you again."

"Does not compute. My visual representation systems do not access the sector from which you are accessing the central data bank. You do not see me."

"Never mind, ROB"

"As you wish."

"Fox? How's everything going?" asked Bill, from the hallway.

"Couldn't be better." The commander answered.

"See? Told you I'd take good care of her." Rita commented, waltzing in and throwing an arm around Fox's shoulder.

"Her?" said ROB's voice. "Incorrect. My artificial gender interface is masculine. Computing… Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha-"

Fox shut down the computer terminal.

"What was that?" radioed Soul.

"That was ROB, the computer system." Fox answered grimly, "more specifically, that was an experimental AI 'humor' expansion that Slippy coded and installed."

"Sheesh. Sorry I asked."

"Excuse me." Mind interrupted over the com, "I think we have company."

Two squads of Invaders and one squad of Eradicators cut through the Aquan dawn. They swung eastward, and then fell into formation behind a single Mark X2 fighter.  
Colonel Caiman reviewed the orders in his mind, exulting. After five years of being shunted aside, passed over, and put on planetary defense, at last his talent had been recognized. Finally a mission worthy of his great abilities. If he played his cards right, he'd have a commandership in no time. Maybe even a general, yes, that was it. General Caiman. Wonderful. Why yes, Andross, he thought, I'll be happy to take over all control of the Empire when you retire. What's that? You're retiring now? Oh, don't worry, I'll take good care of everything…

His reverie was abruptly interrupted by a single blue and black arwing that arced out from the sea and flew overhead.

"Ah, Ms. LeShette." Caiman said, "The last of the McClouds. How tragic." He signaled the squad of Eradicators to move in on her. "It's a shame, you know," he continued, "there won't be a heroic death for you. No final sacrifice that destroys the enemy ship, no last-minute melodramatic exhortations. You'll die here in hiding from the Empire you obviously couldn't conquer-"

"You've been working on this speech for a long time, haven't you?" said Rita.

"It's a shame." Caiman repeated, trying to sound imperious but sounding more sulky than anything, "But then your father and your brother didn't do any better did they? One executed ignominiously by his wingman, the other tortured to death alone in-"

"Tell me, Caiman," a different voice interrupted, "do you believe in ghosts?"

Four Arwings exploded out of the sea, firing on the Venomians. Half the invaders, still flying in formation, were shot down quickly. The rest scattered.

"Uh, uh, attack!" Caiman ordered. The remaining Venom fighters rallied, but were cut down. Two of the Arwings had moved off and were circling the combat, shooting down any fighter that tried escaping.

The Eradicators were falling now, as Rita's ship turned and joined the assault. Laser peppered the imperial formation, decimating it. In a few moments, the only ships left were the Arwings and the Mark X2.

"How?" Caiman gasped as his shields failed and McCloud homed in on him. "You're supposed to be dead."

"That makes two of us, then." Fox answered, and fired.

"Meteo isn't a bad idea." Rita admitted, as they lifted off aboard Great Fox "But where will we stay?"

"There's an abandoned science station we've been using," explained Soul, "and this ship isn't exactly cramped either."

"Hey," began Bill, "Where'd you learn to fly?"

"I didn't." Soul said, smiling the sort of smile that makes you want back away slowly.

"Uh, c'mon," said Bill, "The way you were circling and pursuing, that's advanced stuff. You must have had some pretty top-notch training."

"Sorry to disappoint you, but I'd never flown a plane of any kind before today." The squirrel smiled again, and turned around to stare out at the stars that were just becoming visible.

  
Chapter 10  
  


"Silly way of putting it, I know," said Father Brown apologetically. "Sounds like a fairy tale, but poor Armstrong was killed with a giant's club, a great green club, too big to be seen, and which we call the earth. He was broken against this green bank we are standing on."

"What do you mean?" asked the detective quickly.

"Don't you see," he explained, pointing, "he was thrown down from there?"

-G. K. Chesterton, _The Three Tools of Death_  
  


Rita was quick to assess the station's practical capabilities. "What a dump!"

"I suppose that's not inaccurate." Mind said "We haven't had much free time or I would have fixed it up a bit more. As it is, we just needed someplace to keep things that we didn't need at the moment."

"Like Fox?"

"Ooh, good one." Laughed her brother. "By the way, I had ROB run a search through the mainframe. You were right, so far as I was able to tell."

"Meaning?"

"Meaning that I wasn't able to get in as deeply as you were, but everything I did manage to hack was the same as the info you got." Fox said. "You're an excellent hacker."

"Thank you." said Mind, smiling a little. "Oh, I checked the prison logs again on the way here. Two things. Katt's been transferred. She's at the same prison you were, in the cell across from yours."

"Why?"

"Well, that brings me to the second thing. Falco's been transferred too. He's in your cell."

"You are both very exasperating." Leon said, wiping off one of his knives and putting it back into the suitcase.

Falco coughed weakly in reply.

"It stands to reason that one of you knew of the escape, simply because either McCloud or Grey would have had to have known. It is well known that you," he pointed at Falco, "are the only person McCloud had any contact with for weeks prior to the escape, and you," he turned to Katt, "were organizing the rebellion with Grey. It is utterly inconceivable that neither of you knows anything."

Blood from the cut on Katt's forehead was dripping into her eyes. She began shivering as Leon came closer to where she was sitting on the floor.

"I am becoming tired of asking, Who helped McCloud escape?"

"We don't know." Said Falco in a monotone.

Leon drew himself up and looked at them for a long moment. Then, without a word, he replaced all of his tools in the suitcase and left the cell. From the other side of the bars he said, "There are rumors that the two of you have some affections for each other. If so, I would suggest that you use what time is left to say farewell." And then he left.

Wolf was waiting around the corner when Leon arrived grinning. "Uh, Leon," he began, then stopped.

"You were watching, then?" Leon said, "Wonderful, wasn't it?"

"Leon-" Wolf repeated, raising his voice.

"The best part," the chameleon rhapsodized, "Is that they're both telling the truth, that's obvious."

"Wha-?" Wolf said, stepping back.

"Which will be worse, do you think? The physical pain that comes from my instruments, or the mental pain that comes from my incredulity?"

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Wolf shouted.

Leon blinked, surprised for a moment. "Wrong?" he finally said, "I'm afraid I don't know what you mean."

"Yes," answered Wolf, "Yes you do. I won't be coming down here with you again, Leon." And he left.

"Where's Fox?" Bill asked when he got up the next morning.

"I don't know." Answered Rita, "Maybe he went somewhere."

"Where would that be?"

"I don't know."

Katt came to on top of a seaside cliff. She vaguely remembered being dragged from her cell and marched to the elevator, where she'd passed out. She couldn't remember if Falco had been brought too.

The guards hauled her roughly upright and tied her to a pole or something, she was too frightened to care what it was. They stood looking at her for a moment, and then Leon's voice said, "Leave us."

She looked over and saw Leon dragging Falco up the hill with his arms chained together. Falco stumbled and tripped, often he was more crawling than walking. Katt turned away and closed her eyes, trying not to pass out again. She hadn't realized he was so weakened.

"I've a long time thinking about this." Leon said, "and I quite frankly couldn't decide on what was the best way to do it. I'm still not totally satisfied with my solution," he paused, "but it's the best I could come up with. Oh well. One does what one can."  
The chameleon busied himself with Falco's chains for a moment, then stood up. The restraints fell away and clattered to the ground.

"There." The Leon said. "Go."

"Huh?" answered Falco.

"Perhaps I did not make myself clear. You're free."

Katt looked up sharply. Falco was standing unsteadily at the edge of the cliff, with the waves just behind him. Leon was on the very top of the path, wearing a smile that was anything but friendly.

"You're really letting me go?"

"Yes."

"I'm really free?"

"Utterly and completely. Free as a bird, if you'll excuse the expression."

Falco looked up and down the coast for a moment, than back at Leon. "What's the catch?"

"None that I know of. Just go, and quickly."

"Uh, okay." He decided Leon must fallen against a door and hit his head, or something. Oh well, he certainly wasn't going to start griping about it. He bent to undo Katt's bonds, but was stopped by the click and hum of blaster being charged.

"She stays." Leon said, amused.

"Oh, so that's it." Falco said, standing up again. "You're jealous."

"Not in the least. As soon as you're gone, she" Leon gestured with the gun, "goes back to the prison camp she was in before."

Falco's expression hovered between rage, sorrow, and utter confusion, with confusion getting the most prominent position. "Why?"

Leon smiled in a way that might incite mob violence. "That's for me to know, and you to figure out. If you can."

Katt and Falco looked at each other for a moment. He finally spoke. "I'll come back for you, I promise."

"Oh, I seriously doubt that." Leon said sardonically.

Falco shot him a withering look, and then started down the path.

"Excuse me," Leon interrupted, "I wouldn't go that way if I were you."

"What now?" shouted Falco, getting angry.

"I'm afraid I omitted to mention to the guards that I was releasing you. They'll shoot you on sight."

"Than why even bother-"

"That is by no means the only direction you can go." The chameleon said, smiling again."

"The only other way is to- Oh, I get it." Falco spat, his voice dropping, "You brought me up here just to make it worse when I get dragged back into your little funhouse."

"No," said Leon casually, as if he were remarking on the weather. "I brought you up here to kill you."

"Sorry to disappoint you," Falco said, "but I'm not jumping off any cliff."

"I suggest you do." Said Leon, pressing his gun to Katt's head.

Falco looked for a moment, not yet understanding. Then he blinked and said, "You mean-"

"Exactly. Unless you jump, she will die and you, my friend, will not. You will go back to prison, to relive this afternoon in your mind for the rest of your life." Leon explained, "One of you dies here and now. Which one that is, I leave entirely up to you."

Falco stood at the precipice's edge for a long moment, staring at them. "I hate you." he finally said.

"The feeling is mutual." Leon smiled. "The difference is that now I am the stronger."

Falco turned around and faced the ocean, nerving himself. Katt wanted to shout for him to stop, but she knew it wouldn't do any good.

"Get on with it, Lombardi." Leon said, pressing the barrel against Katt's head.

She couldn't watch. She screwed her eyes shut and turned away.


	2. Book 2: Sapiensa

Chapter 11  
  


The trouble with thinking logically is that you can be outwitted by anything that thinks at least as logically as yourself.

-Douglas Adams, _Mostly Harmless  
  
_

"Is this a good idea?" Fox asked, crawling through the ventilation shaft.

"Yes." Said Mind.

"You're sure about that?"

"Yes."

"But didn't I just leave here?"

"Yes."

"And now you think I should try to get back in?"

"Yes."

"Is it worth it to ask you to explain?"

Mind paused, as if gathering herself for a daunting task. "Okay, you've just escaped from here, right?"

"Go on." Fox said.

"So that means that they are looking for you."

"Still with you."

"But, you were seen on Aquas, which confirms the instinctive guess Andross has as to what you'll do."

"And that guess is?"

"That you'll get as far away from here as you can."

"C'mon," complained Soul, "can't you explain and crawl at the same time?"

"I thought you said that I'd go back to the other prison."

"Ah, found our voice again, have we?" Leon said briskly, "how wonderful."

"I thought you said that I'd go back to the other prison." Katt repeated dully.

Leon shrugged. "I lied."

Katt looked up sharply, suddenly frightened again. For five days now she hadn't been either awake or asleep; a dull, throbbing ache had taken the place of both. But now she was suddenly alert again, and what she saw only made her more frightened.

Leon hadn't opened his suitcase. It lay unregarded in the corner of the cell. He was instead sitting on the metal bench, eyeing her speculatively. She felt his gaze traveling up and down from her feet to her face, and the fact that she was securely fastened to the wall did nothing to ease her distress.

"I think I see now." Leon finally spoke, "For the longest time I couldn't imagine what Lombardi saw in you. You have no class, no dignity, hardly any personality. One would be tempted to think that your only interests are combat piloting and seducing elite mercenaries, and that in the end you only valued piloting as a means of seducing elite mercenaries. If it weren't for Lombardi, I probably wouldn't even have looked at you even once." He stood up and began pacing in front of her, never taking his eyes off her figure. "But now, yes, there is something. Not much, but there is something. I think I can tell what Falco saw in you."

Kat swallowed heavily. She'd seen Leon with his face covered in blood, laughing quietly at some prisoner's suffering. This deadly calm he now displayed was scarcely any better.

"You're really quite desirable in a low, contemptible sort of way," the torturer said, leaning forward so that his face was mere inches from hers, "but then I have never backed off from what I wanted merely because it was low and contemptible."

She closed her eyes, trying not to picture what she knew he was thinking. She could feel his breath on her neck; it smelled awful.

"Commander Powalski," the PA buzzed, "Commander Powalski, please report to the main control room immediately."

Leon straightened up, disappointment etched on his features. He stood for a moment, considering, then spoke. "Consider this an intermission. As soon as I have attended to the affairs of the moment, I shall return. I look forward to becoming-" he paused, "much more closely acquainted with you, Miss Monroe."

His steps faded down the corridor. After a few moments, Katt began breathing again.

"What's up?" Wolf asked as he strode down the hall.

"Alarm went off in sector 5." The security officer answered, "Powalski's been sent in from sector 6, and Dengar from sector 4."

"We're going straight down the center, then? Good, I could use some exercise."

Leon motioned one of the security personnel forward, seething inwardly. It was just like thieves to break in just when he was about to start something else. He let his mind drift back to that 'something else,' and so wasn't quite paying attention as he and the rest of the guards moved down the corridor. By the time he looked up sharply at the black-cloaked figure that dropped from the ceiling, it was too late.

"There's nothing here." Pigma observed around a mouthful of chewing gum.

"Thank you, Pigma," said Wolf dryly, "I think I'd already figured that out." He kicked at a desk in frustration. "First chance of a fight in months, and there's nothing! Stupid, cheating, lousy- Hey where's Leon? Wasn't he supposed to be here, too?"

"Uh, Yeah, I think," grunted Pigma, shoving another stick of gum into his already dangerously overloaded mouth. "What does it matter? Wolf?"

His commander wasn't listening. He was staring at the other end of the room, where a squirrel dressed in black leaned nonchalantly against the doorway. Seeing he was observed, the squirrel smiled and approached a few steps.

"You really need to get sturdier soldiers. Those ones went down like tissue paper."

"?" was all Wolf could think to say.

"Though I suppose tissue paper isn't a very good metaphor. I ought to think up something better."

"?"

"Cardboard cutouts, perhaps. Yes, that sounds much better, doesn't it?"

"Get him!" ordered Pigma through his gum.

The soldiers charged, raising their rifles. For a split second, the squirrel stood perfectly still, looking Wolf in the eye and smiling. Then he jumped sideways, somehow slipping between the blaster shots. He landed behind a potted fern and crouched down. Two of the soldiers paused, and then advanced toward him. In a flash, the squirrel jumped up from behind the plant, landed with one foot on each of their heads, and shot three more guards before again rolling sideways and through a pair of double doors. Retreating footsteps echoed behind from behind them.

Wolf blinked and snapped out of his reverie. With an enraged roar, he gave chase.

The squirrel, at any rate, was not difficult to follow. He left a trail of toppled furniture and bewildered soldiers. It was as if the spy were more interested in doing acrobatics than escaping. Wolf managed to catch a glimpse of black cloak rounding a corner ahead. The guards had been left far behind, and of course Pigma had no hope at all of keeping up, unless the chase went into a mess hall.

It did.

Wolf was amazed at the chaos that reigned in the cafeteria. The squirrel had leapt from table to table across the room, scattering various meals as he went. A full two divisions of troops sat dumbstruck, covered in their lunches.

"After him!" Wolf ordered, picking his way as well he could across the besplattered floor, "He's a rebel spy!"

The troops came out of the mess hall into a long, wide hall. The squirrel was ahead, making for the elevators. Wolf drew his gun and began firing; the troops did the same. The squirrel ducked, rolled, jumped sideways and somehow avoided every shot. It was as if he knew beforehand where the shots would hit.

The spy had drawn his own gun, but wasn't turning around, he continued to dodge as he ran, and shot three times, blowing out the panels for the elevators. He jumped inside the last open elevator, a second before the doors closed.

"What are you doing?! Don't hurt me!" shouted the panicked secretary already in the elevator.

"Calm down." The squirrel smiled. "I have no intention of doing anything to you." He pushed the button for the top floor, then took out a can of spray paint from under his cloak.

Wolf stopped, looking at the elevator. It began moving up, then stopped between the two top floors of the compound.

The spy had pushed the stop button, Wolf mused, he's stalling for time. He turned to one of the soldiers, who was wiping mashed potatoes off his arm. "Get maintenance. Tell them to lower all the elevators to the bottom floor. I'll be waiting there."

"Katt? Katt, wake up."

Katt jolted awake, afraid that Leon was back already.

"Hey, calm down, it's me." Fox said.

She looked around. Fox and a mink were in her cell, undoing the clasps on her arms and legs. The door was open.

"They said you were dead." She said weakly, "Are you?"

"No."

"Falco is." Katt said quietly.

Fox stopped, clenching his jaw for a moment. Then he shook his head. "Dang. Well, you aren't dead, so let's just get you out of here while we can. All done?"

"Ready." The mink answered.

Andrew gripped the gun handle nervously, hoping the tip's shaking wasn't too obvious.

Two maintenance workers pried the elevator doors open. As soon as they started to open, Wolf pushed past and stopped.

The only person in the elevator was a nervous-looking mouse, clutching a briefcase. But spray painted on the back wall was a message and an arrow, and the vent on the top was open.

"I WENT THAT WAY." It said, pointing up.

Wolf looked up in time to see a black shape jump from the cable to an air vent leading to the roof.

"Are you all right?" Fox asked.

"Yes, I suppose so." Katt said, staring out the window of the transport. "I've had plenty of time to cry already, if that's what you mean."

"It isn't." Fox said, "I meant, do you think you can handle flying again, without Falco."

Katt didn't answer.

"I know it's going to be hard, going back to where you have memories of him. And believe me, I understand. But remember that what happened to you will keep happening to more and more innocent people if we don't stop it."

"I was afraid you'd say something like that." She looked up sharply at Fox. "I want a piece of Leon."

"Save a couple for me." Fox said, smiling ruefully, "Are you in, then?"

"Yes, I'm with you."

"And by the time you'd gotten to the roof, they were gone?" General Opprimus asked.

"Yes, sir. Guards reported one of our transports lifting off from the roof about that time, but they thought nothing of it at the time." Wolf said dully.

Andross sighed heavily. "If this continues, Wolf, I don't think you'll like the consequences. Dismissed." He turned to his new general. "I'm instituting encryption on all internal transmissions. It looks like we have at least one elite spy against us."

"Yes," replied General Opprimus quietly, as if he were thinking about something else.

  
Chapter 12  
  


Westley: I told you I would always come, why didn't you wait for me?

Buttercup: Well, you were dead.

Westley: Death cannot stop true love. All it can do is delay it a little.

-William Goldman, _The Princess Bride_  
  


"Hang on, land down there." said Fox a few hours later.

Katt opened her eyes slowly, wondering how long she'd been awake. She stood up slowly, her body complaining with every motion. "Where are we?" she wondered out loud as she entered the cockpit.

"En route to Meteo," answered Soul, "but currently descending towards Venom. Only Fox knows why."

"Venom? But there's nothing there now but a bunch of prison camps…"

"I'm ready." Fox's voice said.

"We're landing now," announced Mind, guiding the ship under the cover an outcrop of rocks. "What next?"

"Just wait here," Fox said, opening the rear hatch. "If I'm not back in five hours, head to Meteo and have Bill lead the rebellion." He buckled an ammo strap securely over one shoulder.

"What do you mean?" said Katt, becoming a little angry, "The whole system is depending on you! You can't go off alone!"

"There are some things," Fox answered, turning away, "that are more important then the whole system. Goodbye, for now at least."

"Sir, I wonder…"

"Yes, General?"

"If these spies," began General Opprimus, "are, in fact, freeing everyone connected with the Starfox team, then…"

"Continue."

"Then I suppose it would be best if they were localized. Here."

"True," Andross mused, running a finger absently through his beard, "True. Take care of it."

"Thank you, sir." Said Victor, "I will."

It was foggy. Fara hated it when it was foggy.

She hated it when it was sunny too, and when it was raining, and when it was snowing, and when it was cloudy, and when it was sleeting, and when it was thundering, and when there was a tornado she hated it too. Not there ever had been, but she knew that if there were, she would hate it.

She hated the work. She hated the guards, she hated the days she and she hated the nights.

And the food, she definitely hated the food. Look on the bright side, she tried to tell herself, at least you don't have to worry about your weight.

She hated the bright side, too.

"Phoenix!" yelled Steve, "get over here!"

Fara looked up. The overseer was only a few feet away.

"I've got a blip in the fence, in sector 5," he belched, "take care of it."

"Isn't that a job for the maintenance crew?" She said.

"Yeah, well, it's too much bother to call them." Steve yawned. "You're available, you do it."

Trying not to scream, Fara turned and stomped toward the exit and sector 5.

"And if you aren't back in five minutes, I'll put you on half rations!" called Steve after her.

She picked her way through the fog, slashing at the obscuring vapors. She imagined that they had Steve's face.

She finally found sector 5. Steve hadn't given her a map, she only knew it was sector 5 because the lights on the fence weren't flashing. That meant total loss of power. It was tempting to vault over the top and be gone. Very tempting, but she knew it was foolish. What could she do, in the outside world? Where could she go, without…

She shook herself out of her self-pity and looked for the cause of the power outage. 

he found it, ten feet away. Someone had cut the five lowest wires and bent them back around the pylons, leaving a gap about six feet wide. She couldn't see it very well, because the fog seemed almost thicker around the hole-

Was that a smoke bomb on the ground there?

She advanced cautiously. Suddenly she was grabbed from behind.

"Phoenix! Where are you?" raged Steve, "When I catch you, I'll beat you black and blue you little- urk!"

Fox eyed the overseer coldly, holding him in one hand by the throat. "Unless I am very much mistaken," he said through clenched teeth, "You would be Steve. Fara's told me all about you." He drew back his other fist, but someone restrained him.

"Allow me." Said Fara, smiling at Steve.

Chapter 13  
  


The path that I have chosen now has led me to a wall, and with each passing day I feel a little more like something dear was lost.

It rises now before me, a dark and silent barrier between

All I Am

And all that I would ever want to be, it's just a travesty.

Towering,

Marking off the boundaries my spirit would erase.

-Kansas, The Wall

"Just what the hell happened?" Leon demanded.

He was lying in a hospital bed with a cast on his leg and an IV in his arm, glaring at Andrew and Pigma.

"I dunno," shrugged Andrew, "There was this spy, I think, but I never saw him. Wolf seemed awfully angry about it, though."

"I saw him," Pigma said. "He killed four soldiers and knocked out another one, and I don't think we even touched him. Wolf chased him, but I couldn't keep up."

"You," Leon snapped, "couldn't keep up with a slug. Unless you were trying to eat it." He sighed. "Any idea what he was after?"

"Yeah, we're pretty sure they were trying to rescue Lombardi. Good job you executed him."

"And how do we know that?"

"Oh, cause Monroe is gone. They got her out."

Leon sat for moment with his mouth open. Then he closed his eyes. "Go away." He said, and rolled over.

Wolf was sitting in the hall, looking out the window at nothing. "How is he?" he asked without turning around.

"He'll be fine in a couple weeks." Andrew answered, "Uh, Wolf?"

"Yeah?"

"What's with you? You've just been sitting around for days now, you never do anything but wander around the base, and you won't talk to Leon." Andrew narrowed his eyes, as if suddenly suspicious. "Something's wrong, isn't it?"

"Brilliant, Andrew. You're a genius." grumbled Wolf, getting up and leaving.

"98," said Wolf through clenched teeth.

"99," he groaned, closing his eyes to keep out beads of sweat.

"100!" he shouted, and let the weights rest back on the supports. He didn't bother sitting up, he just lay on his back and fumed. Usually a good work out erased any doubts he had about Andross, which was why, perhaps, Wolf spent so much time in the gym.  
It hadn't worked today. There was something going on in Corneria City, something that was altogether wrong. Okay, said Wolf to himself, let's just think about this. What, exactly, do I have to be upset about? He couldn't think of an answer, but that only made it worse. There was something wrong, he could almost taste it. Not the simple straightforward wrongness of a conqueror and tyrant, that Wolf didn't mind, at least not too much. This was twisted, convoluted, elusive. It made you feel as if everything but you were in it; in on, well, in on whatever it was.

"OK," he tried again as he stepped into the shower, "What does Leon have to do with it?" That was tough. He'd known Leon for ages, almost forever it seemed like. They'd met back when he was pirating, and his crew got into a barfight with Leon's street gang. From then on Leon would go on raids with him, hang out on the ship. He turned out to be a damn good pilot, too. And a pretty good commander, so it wasn't very long before he was second in command.

Then Wolf had found out about the torture.

He'd been inspecting the prisoners one day, and noticed odd marks on their arms. And legs. And shoulders. Since the only other person who had access to the prisoners was Leon, it didn't take long to figure out who had done it. Wolf hadn't bothered anyone about it, it seemed easiest that way. When they were hired by Andross, Leon had made it a rule to torture at least once a week. He'd taken out patents on one or two devices, and acquired a terrible reputation among the troops. Wolf still hadn't cared about it, it didn't really bother him much, and it was stupid to object to things over which he had no control, anyway. On occasion, he'd even enjoyed watching. McCloud, for example. That had been fun, showing up the little snot for all the times he'd humiliated Starwolf. But he couldn't deny that lately, in fact all along, there was something about Leon that seemed wrong, especially when Monroe was brought in. That was just wrong, Wolf couldn't explain it, it was just wrong.  
He stepped out of the shower, frustrated. Okay, he'd figured out where he stood with as to Leon, but so what? What did that have to do with what was wrong with the whole thing? He pulled on his pants and shirt inattentively, not noticing at first that he'd put his shirt on backwards.

There was something wrong here, he fumed as he stormed down the corridor, and he was going to find out what if it-

He passed by a black panther wearing a general's uniform. The general didn't speak; he nodded briefly in Wolf's direction, and continued walking. Wolf himself stopped, staring into space. After a moment he looked down the hall after the panther.

Wolf was a creature of instinct. What most people would have dismissed as nerves or deja vu, he sensed, understood, and acted on. It was a great advantage as a pilot, less so in normal life, so he tried, sometimes, to ignore his instincts. But now they had all jumped up and were screaming in his face. He couldn't ignore them and he didn't want to.  
He looked down the hall at the panther again, and shuddered. At least now he knew what was wrong.  
  
Chapter 14  
  


Bastien had shown the lion the inscription on the reverse of the Gem. "What do you suppose it means?" he asked. "'DO WHAT YOU WISH.' That must mean I can do anything I feel like. Don't you think so?"

All at once Grograman's face looked alarmingly grave, and his eyes glowed.

"No," he said in his deep rumbling voice. "It means you must do what you really and truly want. And nothing is more difficult."

  
-Michael Ende, _The Neverending Story  
  
_

"Aren't you going to ask her?" asked Bill.

"Uh, ask who? Ask what?" Fox said, very quickly.

"That," Soul remarked, "was perhaps the least convincing deception I've ever seen."

"Guys," whined Fox, "please, I don't know who you're talking about."

"Yes you do!" they said in unison.

"What, you mean Katt?" Fox asked, grasping at straws, "Why Katt? I mean, why in the world would I ask Katt to marry-"

"Who said anything about marriage?" crowed Soul, smirking triumphantly.

"Um…" Fox whimpered, stalling for time.

"What are you two doing to him?" Rita demanded, coming around the corner suddenly. "The only one who's allowed to embarrass Fox is me."

"Thanks, Rita, now-" began Fox.

"Don't worry, I'll protect you from them." She said, sidling closer to him. She rested her cheek against his shoulder.

"Uh, Ri?"

"Hmm?"

"What are you doing?" Fox said nervously, glancing at Soul who was grinning even more wickedly than before.

"Snuggling you." She answered, "What's wrong with that?"

"Well, aren't you kind of my sister?" He said, backing up a step.

Bill blinked.

"Oh, Fox, don't be silly." Rita giggled. "You know that-"

"Message for McCloud, Fox." Bleeped ROB64 stridently.

"Uh, thank you, I'll take it here."

"Take. It. Here. Analyzing… Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha..."

"Play message!" Fox shouted, over the computer.

A voice masked with static cut off ROB's joviality. "This is Alistar Phoenix of the Fortunan resistance. I was told this frequency would reach you. If you get this message, please reply at exactly 22:00 Cornerian time. If you are who I'm told you are, then I have no doubt you and I have a great deal to say to one another. Phoenix out. Message repeats- This is Alistar Phoenix of the Fortunan resistance. I was told-" the speaker blinked off.

"22 hundred," Fox mused, "What time is it now?"

"Nine thirty-five." Soul said.

"We'd better get to the station then." Fox said, gesturing. "Thank goodness!" He added, under his breath.

"Right behind you." Said the squirrel.

"Wait for me!" said his sister.

Bill watched her for a moment, then followed without saying anything.

"Where is everybody?" Fara wondered, putting her head around the doorway of the station control room. Everyone else was standing around the main monitor, staring at it. Mind had her finger poised over a switch, and Soul stood next to her counting quietly. 

What's going on?"

"Fara? Good, we couldn't find you anywhere." Fox called, taking his eyes of the static filled screen for a moment. "You'll probably want to watch this."

"Watch what?" she asked, putting her arm around his. Rita glared at her for a moment.

"Couldn't you be doing that with the computer?" Bill said to Mind.

"No. It's better this way." She answered without moving her finger.

"10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5," said Soul.

"Here goes nothing." Fox said.

"3, 2, 1," said Soul.

Mind pushed the button, the screen rolled, and then cleared, revealing a sandy-hued fennec fox, surrounded by a great many tough-looking persons.

"Dad?" asked Fara.

"Well, I suppose I shouldn't be surprised to see you there," The rebel leader said dryly, "but business first. McCloud, can you guarantee absolutely that you will overthrow Andross?"

"No. I may die while trying."

"That will do for now. Now, we of the Fortunan resistance wish to make certain arrangements with you, and then afterwards perhaps there are other things we should discuss."

"Dad…" Fara blushed.

"Man, I cannot believe Fox!" Bill said incredulously nearly two hours later. He got up and paced around the couch, then changed his mind and sat down again. "All that time, it was just 'yes,' 'no,' and 'I will.' Nothing of interest!"

"You have to admit, though, he made a great deal," Soul said, opening a can of soft drink, "money, weapons, personnel, ships, info, you name it, they offered it to us!" He paused, as if thinking. "What, exactly, did we give them in return?"

"Hope, maybe." Bill grunted. "Fox didn't really know, but the General always saw him not so much as a soldier but as a sort of publicity and morale icon. Kind of a mascot, really." He smiled. "I remember some of my pilots didn't want to fly when he wasn't under contract with the army; they said it jinxed us, not having him on our side."

Soul shrugged. "Maybe that's what they needed, then. A contract. Hope. What were you expecting Fox to say?"

"More than he did, at least."

"How so?"

"In case you haven't noticed," said Bill, "We have very little chance of winning here. And Fox's dad had very specific instructions for what to do in a situation like that."

"And you think Fox isn't following these instructions?" asked Soul, raising an eyebrow, "what were you expecting him to do?"

"I was expecting him to mention Fara."

"Okay, now we've gotten to the part I don't understand. Fara's that girl we rescued the other day, right? So what does Fox have to do with her?"

Bill shot him a withering glance. "Didn't you think it at all odd that Fox insisted on going to get her alone?"

"Well why shouldn't- Oh, I get it now!" the squirrel nodded. "But what about that Rita girl, she seems a bit more, well, outspoken."

"That doesn't mean a thing." Scoffed Bill, "To Fox, she's still just his little sister. She might wish he would, but he'll never go farther than feeling protective." He finished vehemently, and realized he was sweating. He swallowed. "Fara's the one. Fox has adored her since high school."

"And that was her father we were talking to just now?"

"Yeah, and that's really weird. He's the absolute last person I'd expect to be leading a revolution of anything bigger than a departmental org chart."

"A man who hath no music in his soul?"

"Exactly. He objected to Fara's associating with any of us." Bill said, "not because of any class difference, but because Fox refused to do advertisements for his company, Firebird Translines."

Soul leaned back and shrugged, "Well, getting conquered and having your family enslaved can change a person. And, hey, just as long as he's helping us out, I won't mind how involved his 'issues' are." He stood up, yawning. "See you tomorrow morning."

Bill went to bed a few minutes later. When the whole station was silent, Fox wandered out of the shadows to the window. He spent three hours looking out at the stars.

  
Chapter 15  
  


"Treachery! Seek it out!"

-Shakespeare, _Hamlet_

"Are you quite sure of this?" Mind said, sitting alone at the computer console.

"Yes." Mr. Phoenix answered, his voice distorted by distance and static. "They convoy was supposed to be heavily guarded, but most of the troops were recalled at the last minute. We'd take care of it, but we don't have enough ships capable of getting there in time."

"And you know this how?"

"Luck, mostly." He smiled, "We're fortunate enough to have someone with us that the imperial governor trusts."

"I see."

"Indeed." His smiled faded. "Could I ask of you a favor?"

"Of what sort?"

"Could you tell my daughter, tell her not to get too- close to McCloud? Tell her that I don't think it's wise."

The mink stared for a moment. "Very well. I doubt, however, that she will listen."

"Ah, yes." Alistar sighed. "Tell her, then, that whatever happens, I only wanted what was best for her. Fortuna out." The screen lost feed and resolved to a mass of static.

Mind sat for a long time, considering. Then, she switched off the screen and got up.

"He said there was a convoy out here, unguarded?"

"Not just said." Mind answered, "he showed me very convincing evidence. Copies of official orders and photos."

Five Arwings and two protectors hovered behind a Titanian mesa. Fox had wanted Fara and Rita to stay behind, but they'd shouted him down. Rita declared vehemently that she had her own ship, and no one told her what to do with it. Fara asked sarcastically what he rescued her for, if she wasn't supposed to help out. Fox winced, covered his ears, and then let them come.

The convoy was supposed to pass through the valley below, before rising to atmospheric exit levels at the end. The best point for a surprise attack was to come from the sides as the cargo carriers began their ascent.

"An unguarded convoy," Fox mused. "either Andross doesn't want anyone to suspect I'm alive, or he doesn't think I'm a threat." 

"There's one more possibility." Said Mind.

"What's that?"

"Oh, nothing. Never mind."

The Convoy was unguarded, as promised. It was also empty.

"-the hell?" Bill shouted as another ship went down without dropping any cargo or debris. "There's nothing here! Why the heck would Andross send a convoy with nothing in it."

"Only one reason." Soul said darkly.

"It's a trap," Fox finished, "Get out now!"

As if on cue, Imperial Fighters appeared all around on the horizon. Fox dove under a cascade of bolts. He lobbed bombs into the clouds of approaching fighters, then tore through them with lasers blazing. At the back of the swarm he paused to look around. Bill's and Katt's planes arched away safely. Mind and Soul were almost out of the area as well. Fara's plane emerged from the fighter cloud a moment later.

"Fox!" she said, sounding panicked, "I couldn't get Rita to leave! She's still in there!"

"Damn!" Fox cursed, "Get out of here, Fara!"

"Fox, what are you- No! Don't!"

She watched his Arwing turn back into the cloud and shoot down at least twenty enemy planes before being hit. Rita had fled, not knowing her brother's plight, but Fara saw all too clearly a smoking wreck plow into the ground beside the mesa.

"Fox!" she screamed, and dove after him.

Fox finally shook himself free of the parachute. He'd never get used to those things.  
His arwing was a wreck, that was certain even without examination. Fox was slightly surprised at the size of the crater it had made. Sighing, he turned on his comlink; hopefully he could evade the Imperial troops long enough for someone to come and get him.

"That won't work, the whole area's been seeded with broadcast jammers." Said Mr. Phoenix.

"What are you doing here?" Fox asked without turning around.

"Fulfilling a contract, I'm afraid." The company manager said, "I'm afraid I'll have to ask you to put your hands up and turn around."

Fara stumbled over a cactus. "Fox!" she called, becoming hoarse, "Answer me!"  
She finally spotted him down in a crevice. That was very odd, she thought, he's not doing anything, just standing there with his arms up. And who's that with him? She jogged a few paces closer but then stopped. "Dad?"

"Fara, come here." Alistar said emotionlessly.

"What's going on," she glanced down at the object in her father's hand. "Why are you pointing a gun at Fox?" she asked hesitantly, beginning to feel queasy.

"I'm sorry, Fara. It was the only way."

"The only way? What, what do mean?" She was sweating furiously, but not from the heat.

"I made a contract, Fara." Her father explained, "Andross has guaranteed me and one other person of my choice passage out of his territories, with no questions asked."

Fara felt sick. For a moment she couldn't hear anything.

"I didn't want it to be this way." Alistar sighed, almost apologetically, "but this is beyond my control. If there is one thing I've learned, it's that you have to take your chances when they come. Andross gave me a chance, and now I'm taking it."

"What's the contract say you have to do?" she asked, though she knew what the answer would be.

"Kill McCloud." He said. "I'm sorry."

"No," she whimpered, "oh, no no, please-"

"You can start in new life in some other system." Her father tried to console her, all the time keeping his eye and his gun trained on Fox. "The only other way is slavery and death for all of us."

"No, no, no, it can't be-"

"Fara," said Fox, swallowing hard, "do what he says."

Fara stopped abruptly, feeling suddenly numb.

"If what he's saying his true," Fox paused, "then it's your best chance to be happy. Don't waste it because of me."

"No!" she shouted, all trace of self pity erased from her voice.

The distinct hum of a charged blaster sounded behind Alistar. "Put down the gun, dad." Fara said.

Alistar turned to face his daughter, with sadness in his eyes. "Fara." He said.

She bit her lip and tried to hold the blaster still.

"You aren't going to shoot me." He said.

"But I might." Fox announced as a second blaster hummed to life.

Alistar watched the Arwing take off and pass overhead. Fara was entirely beyond his reach. For now at least, he was glad of that.

He sat on the rock for a moment, and then stood up. He had the ship he had come in; he could get away alone at least. The arrangements he had made to get to the next system should still work. Perhaps, though, it would be best if he didn't stop at the next system.

A nondescript private cargo ship drifted away from Titania. Alistar sighed. If he squinted, he thought he could just make out the Arwing, going the opposite direction.

Well, Fara, he thought, you made your choice. I hope that it's made you happy. 

Goodbye.

He swung the ship around and engaged the hyperdrive.

"Goodbye, Dad." Fara whispered, staring into space.

"Did you say something?" asked Fox.

"Nothing." She answered, then laughed softly. "We have something in common now."

"What?"

She paused, then said, "We've both lost our fathers."

The fighter shot towards Meteo, where there was safety.

For now.

Chapter 16  
  


Again she fled, but swift he came.

Tinuviel! Tinuviel!

He called her by her elvish name;

And there she halted listening.

One moment stood she, and a spell

His voice laid on her: Beren came

And doom fell on Tinuviel

That in his arms lay glistening.

-J. R. R. Tolkein, _The Lord of the Rings_

"I'm afraid His Ultimacy can't see you right now." Said the secretary primly, not looking up from her typing.

"Like Hell!" Wolf shouted, "I'll see him then!" He threw open the doors and stormed into the Emperor's office.

"Hmm?" Andross said, without looking up.

"What the heck is this?" Wolf shouted, flinging an official looking folder on the desk. The edges looked as if they'd been twisted or crumpled, in rage perhaps.

"Hmm?" blinked Andross, glancing around vaguely as if trying to figure out what was going on.

"The heck does 'transferred from active service mean?!'" Wolf continued to rant, "Am I supposed to just wander around all day doing nothing? They won't even let me out of base anymore, just gave me some crap about invalid passes! Just what are you trying to pull-"

"Huh?" Andross looked at Wolf finally, entirely without recognition. "What's wrong?"

"What's wrong?!" screamed Wolf. "What the Hell do you think is wrong?! Half the battles we won we're won by me, and now that we've won I'm being shunted out! That's what's wrong!"

"Oh." said Andross quietly, letting his eyes become unfocused. "I'll have Victor take care of it, he can handle things. Yes, Victor will do it. Yes, Victor…" He trailed off, no longer taking any notice of Wolf.

"Andross? Hey, what's with you?"

The Emperor stared straight ahead, with his mouth hanging open. After a moment he looked up and said, "Hello, who are you?"

"Never mind." Wolf said, and edged out of the room without taking his eyes off the former leader.

"Fara?" Fox called.

"Yes?"

"There's… there's something I want to ask you."

She didn't say anything.

"For a moment back there, I, I thought I'd lost you."

"I thought I'd lost you too." She whispered.

"It comes to the same thing." Fox took a step towards her, then stopped, looking out the window. Corneria was just visible between the asteroids. "We're probably both not going to last long fighting this war, I don't see how it's possible that we can win." He laughed quietly. "When I was a kit I used to wonder what I would do if I was ever in a fight I couldn't win. One day I asked my father what to do."

"And what was the answer?"

"He told me," Fox began, and then paused, turning to look at her, "he said, 'Son, if you can't win a war, first fight well, then die well.'"

Fara sensed the tightness in his voice and didn't respond.

"I've lost everything to Andross." Fox continued. "My family, my home, my friends. I don't want to lose you."

"Fox, I…"

"I always meant to say this to you; I didn't want to have to do it this way, but it's better this way than not at all." He closed his eyes. "Before I… before we lose each other, there was something I wanted to ask you. I know we haven't got much time left together," He drew his face close to hers, "but what time we do have, would you spend it with me, as-"

"Oh, Fox…" was all she could think of to say.

Rita came around the corner, and saw Fara in Fox's arms. They were lit from behind by a view of Corneria, with the sun rising at the edge of the planet. She watched for a moment, then bit her lip and turned away.

  
Chapter 17  
  


"Don't, Will, silence! Remember you have a wife now, and may have children too."

-Robert Bolt, _Man For all Seasons_

"Damn!" shouted Bill uncharacteristically.

The computer's statement of 'access denied' remained unaffected by the expletive.

"Stupid piece of lousy stinking garbage…" he muttered.

"I take it that means you've no more luck than anyone else?" asked Mind from the terminal across the room.

"I've had just as much luck as a black cat knocking over a mirror underneath a ladder on Friday the thirteenth."

"Hey!" protested Katt.

"I may be wrong," Soul interjected, "but I think I should say that typing in totally random words and numbers, as I've been doing, is probably not going to lead to success."

"Well, what do we know?" Fox yawned.

"Not much."

"And we've been at this how long now?"

"Two and a half weeks, about."

Fox stood up. "I'm worn out and fed up. I'm going to bed." He yawned. "Maybe our luck will change tomorrow."

Bill turned back to the screen once he'd gone. "Yeah, sure. You're tired. That's why you're leaving." He sighed heavily. "I wish the girls would go after me for once."

"You," Soul announced, "are jealous."

"Really, you think? Just because my best friend has had to fight females off every time he goes outside? Just because he's married to a girl who could have been a model if she wanted and I can't even get a female to look at me? Why should I be jealous?"

Soul looked thoughtful for a moment. "That was sarcasm, wasn't it?"

Bill, Katt, and Mind blinked at him.

"I thought so." He said, and returned to hacking.

Fara McCloud was sitting in a warm, sunny room on Corneria, holding her son wrapped in a blanket. She closed her eyes and hummed softly, as much to herself as to the baby.

"We meet again." Said a sinister voice.

She looked up. Leon was standing in the doorway, holding Fox's head. He dropped it and it rolled towards her, coming to a stop at her feet.

She looked back at the chameleon. He had drawn a knife and was cutting his throat, no his whole neck. After he'd cut all the way across, he pulled the edge up and began peeling his whole face off, revealing the face of Alistar Phoenix underneath. Her father pointed to the baby, and she pulled aside the blanket from its face. Her son had the head of a black panther, with blood red, glowing eyes.

"Fara!" someone said, and she opened her eyes.

"Are you all right?" Fox said, bending over her, "You were screaming and crying and…"

"Fox," she gasped, "you're here." She pressed her face against his chest and cried softly.

Fox pulled his wife close to him, "Yes I'm here, don't worry." he whispered to her. "It's all right. I'm here, and I'll always be here." She stopped crying slowly, and relaxed. "Go back to sleep." Fox said. "I won't leave you."

"Promise?"

"I promise."

She curled up in his arms and went back to sleep.

"I'm pleased to announce that we've made absolutely no progress." Soul announced.

"How late were you guys up?"

"Most of the night, I think." Bill said. "I fell asleep a couple times. Of course, some of us," he looked darkly at Fox, "didn't even get any hacking done, they were too busy-"

"Ahem." Rita cut him off.

"I wouldn't say that we haven't made any progress," Mind began quickly, to keep Bill from venting any more frustration, "We did find out a few things. The new security system is very complicated. There are six passcodes that must be entered correctly before you gain access to the final security block. After you get through that, you're home free."

"So what we need now are the codes." Fox said.

"Very much so."

"Any way we could hack in and get them?"

"None at all. Everything is on the other side of the codes, now. You can't get so much as the cafeteria menu without them."

"Then we'll have to get them the old fashioned way."

"I'm not letting you go." Fara said, crossing her arms.

"Why not?"

"Why not? Why not let you go back to same place you've only barely escaped three times? Why not let you practically throw yourself back into prison? Why not let you get killed?! Why do you think I married you?"

"Fara," Fox said, "I think you're overreacting."

"Oh no, not yet. Now I'm just panicking. Give me a minute to calm down, and then I'll start overreacting."

"Are you sure about that?" Rita said to Bill.

"Yes," he answered. "I can't count all the times Fox has gotten me out of more trouble than I'm worth. It's time I returned the favor."

"Good luck, then." She said, uncertainly, "You'll need it." She walked away and sat down next to Katt. Bill looked over at Fara, who was somewhere between shouting and tears, then back at Rita, and sighed heavily.

"Fara, I have to do this." Fox said. "I promised to avenge my father and I will."

"And what about what you promised to me?" she said quietly.

"Have we decided yet?" Soul asked to the whole room.

"I'm sorry, Fara," Fox began, softly, "but-"

"I'll go." Bill said. Everyone stared, except for Rita who shifted uncomfortably and looked away. "Don't bother saying anything," he said, "I've already decided, and I'm going."

"But, Bill-" Fox began.

"No, Fox." Bill said firmly. "You have to be safe. Every rebel in the system is counting on you, not to save them, but to remind them to save themselves. You're their hope. You've got to stay safe." He smiled grimly, "Or as safe as reasonably possible."

"Bill," Rita said, her voice uncharacteristically soft, "but, you, you…"

Bill looked at her. He seemed about to speak, but didn't say anything.

Chapter 18  
  


"Nicaragua has been conquered like Athens. Nicaragua has been annexed like Jerusalem," cried the old man, with amazing fire. "But my country is not dead. Nicaragua is an idea."

-G. K. Chesterton, _The Napoleon of Notting Hill_

It was time for the guards to be changed. O'Donnell came in with them. He'd been hanging out in the prison a lot, now that he wasn't allowed outside of the base. Maybe he felt sympathetic.

Christopher A. Pepper, formerly general and commander in chief of the Cornerian army, watched the guard at the hall door. He'd been watching the codes carefully every day almost since their inception, and he nearly had a complete list. Not that he ever expected it to be of any use, but it was better than just sitting in his cell all day. The guard had to enter seven codes at each checkpoint; Pepper knew every one but the sixth and the seventh.

"A-N-A-T-H-E-M-A. Got it." He whispered to himself, then drew back as the next shift of guards came in.

Bill trudged past the security door, sweating as the captain glanced at him.

He wished fervently, and often, that he'd been disguised as someone who had access to the passcodes, but it would have been too difficult to arrange for the disappearance of an officer. Nobody took any notice of the common soldiers. And so, he was on guard duty in the prisons, with no possibility of either getting what he came for or contacting the others. Grumbling to himself, he looked around.

The man in the cell he was guarding was General Pepper.

Perhaps he wasn't so badly placed after all.

"General?" he whispered, first making sure that the hall was empty.

Wolf was puzzled. The soldier outside Pepper's cell was behaving very oddly.

He squeezed past the sleeping guard to the control panel. After a moment or two of searching, he found the controls for the security cameras and zoomed in on Pepper's maximum security cell. He and the guard we're whispering furtively, as if they were planning something.

He shifted the camera to the guard's face. It looked familiar, but not enough. It reminded him of going to a movie and recognizing an actor but not being able to figure out where you'd seen him before.

Wolf growled with frustration. The smallest thing, a guard's slight resemblance to someone Wolf had once known or perhaps merely seen, and he was nearly driving himself mad over it. If only- Wait!

The guard had turned, looking over his shoulder. Perhaps he'd heard something and wanted to make sure he wouldn't get caught gossiping with prisoners. As he turned, the shadow of his helmet fell across one eye, obscuring it in a patch of blackness. Almost as if the guard were wearing an eye patch, and one that didn't fit. 

That was all Wolf needed to see.

Wolf let his jaw hang open for a moment, then got up stiffly to report. An escaped rebel in the base, disguised as a guard. If this didn't get him back into Andross' good books, then nothing would…

Hang on a minute. Wolf stopped in the middle in the hallway and frowned. What the hell did he want with Andross' good books? Were they even Andross' books anymore? The Empire of Lylat had used him, humiliated him, abandoned him, and then imprisoned him. Why would he even consider trying to get back in? But if Grey was in the base, then maybe…

Wolf turned and headed back to his quarters. He had a few ideas.

"I can't give you the codes now." Whispered General Pepper, "They'd see it on tape, and they'd come and get you."

"But I'm not going to be here again!" Bill insisted. "They rotate the guards every day! Tomorrow I'll be at a different cell!"

"Give me your ID number, and I'll get the codes to you somehow."

"General, that's-"

"That's the only way you're going to able to get them out of here."

"I'm not letting you throw away your chance of escape! I'm getting you out, I'll-"

"You will not!" Pepper snapped. "That's an order! Now turn around and don't argue."

Bill opened his mouth, then closed it again and obeyed.

"Trust me. I'll get you the codes. I may not get out, but the codes are more important." The general paused, and when he spoke again his voice was oddly rough. "and Grey, when you see McCloud again, tell him from me that he's a credit to the Cornerian Academy, and tell him to smack Andross upside the face for me." An alarm blew through the prison. "There's your signal. Get going, commander."

"Yes sir." Bill said quietly, and left.

  
Chapter 19  
  


"My only regret is that I have but one life to lose for my country."

-Nathan Hale, last words.

"O'Donnell's been making trouble again." Victor announced as he entered the throne room.

"Huh?" said Andross vaguely.

General Opprimus rolled his eyes. "Wolf O'Donnell. The mercenary pilot you hired. The one who got in my way and you demoted."

"Wolf?"

Victor growled in frustration, and closed his eyes as if in frustration. Andross blinked.

"Wolf O'Donnell needs to be either restored to active service, effectively imprisoned, or given something to do."

"Oh." Murmured Andross.

"I think," said General Opprimus, speaking very slowly, very clearly, and very loudly, with his face less than a foot from the ape's, "that I will have O'Donnell oversee executions. Not only will this give him something to do besides slouch around the base, but it will free me from doing so, and allow more time to spend on more important things."

Andross looked positively terrified for a moment, like a small child who didn't understand his kindergarten assignment. As the general talked, his face sank slowly back into torpor. "Good work." He said sleepily, then began amusing himself by pulling the stuffing out of the arms of his throne.

General Oprimus shook his head and left. As he left, the Emperor began playing with the drool on his cheek.

General Pepper berated himself mentally as he was marched down the hallway. Why hadn't he given the codes to Gray? Why had he delayed? Now it was too late. He had the full list of the codes, but in a few minutes it would die with him.

He barely paid attention as he was strapped to the metal chair. He didn't really notice when all but one of the guards left. He wasn't paying attention when Wolf came in, fuming, and wasn't really listening when he told the last guard to leave.

He only began to take an interest when Wolf said that he supposed he was wondering what was going on.

It suddenly occurred to General Pepper to do so.

"I just wanted to talk to you for a moment," Wolf said, "about your friends."

"Uh, I don't understand." Pepper said nervously.

Wolf glanced at the security camera behind him. It stared back impassively.

"Uh, well," Wolf said, "about the magic words."

Pepper stared.

"The magic words to turn to grey." Wolf made a typing motion in the air with his hand.

"You, you know about Gray?" Pepper whispered incredulously.

Wolf nodded quickly.

"Then why isn't he in here too?"

"Because I'm the only one who knows."

Pepper glanced at the camera, then swiftly tapped his hip pocket once with his elbow.

"Uh, now what?" said Wolf, painfully aware of the camera over his shoulder.

Pepper nodded his head toward it.

Wolf turned. The camera was not facing them, it had swiveled around to search the rest of the chamber. Slowly it began turning back.

Wolf shot his arm out, and grabbed the codes, knowing for sure that he wasn't going to make it, that the camera would catch him with his hand in the criminal's pocket, the pocket containing vital security codes.

Wolf shook his head. "Damn," he muttered, and turned to face the camera.

It wasn't on.

"You idiot!" shouted the head guard in the security control room.

"Hey, shut up, man." The guard who had tripped over the power cable protested.

"Yeah," agreed the other guard, "it's not like anything's gonna happen in there."

The head officer scrambled under the table, frantically searching for the plug. "But if they found out about this, it'll be our necks. You guys wanna find what it's like in that chair?" He sighed with audible relief as the screen flickered back to life, showing Wolf opening the door and leaving the prisoner alone. "Let's not tell anybody about this, huh?" he said.

The guard who'd 'accidentally' unplugged the security cameras, one William Grey, smirked quietly as he agreed.

Pepper slumped sullenly as a faceless uniform poured over the official notice of execution. He let his mind wander back to Corneria, to the park where he used to play as a boy, to his wife who'd been killed in the conquest, to the children they'd never had. He paused for a long time at the view from the balcony of his office, remembering the way he was able to see over the entire city, and the plains and lake outside it, all the way to the forest covered mountains, that were always cloaked with mist in the mornings.

It was still there, he realized. The lake, the plains, the mountains and the forests; Andross couldn't destroy them, couldn't rule them. Maybe they were gone forever for him, but for someone, someone's children, they'd be waiting.

He came back to the present to hear the soldier asking if he had any last requests. He began to shake his head, then stopped.

"Could I have a lollipop?" he asked.

Through a plexiglass sheet, Wolf watched the room fill with toxic fumes. His thoughts dwelt primarily on a scrap of cloth in his pocket with seven words on it.

Bill forced himself to watch the entire execution, then excused himself, claiming he needed to use the restroom. He went to the end of the hall and just stood, looking out the window, for a few minutes.

General Oprimus glanced into the execution chamber a half hour later. He found nothing out of the ordinary there, then made arrangements for the body to disposed of.

Chapter 20  
  


And though it's always been with me I must tear down the wall and let it be.

All I Am

And all that I was ever meant to be

In harmony.

-Kansas, _The Wall_

Deep in a slum of Corneria city, across the river from the Imperial palace, there was a bar. This bar was located on the ground floor of a semi-decrepit tenement, with three or four floors of disreputable apartments above it. These were generally filled with drifters, criminals, fugitives, and other undesirables.

Tonight was no different.

A light came on in a window of the top floor. A figure could be observed inside, walking back and forth. Sometimes the figure opened a large box and unpacked it. Sometimes it paused and stared out the window. It seemed almost as if he were waiting for something, and none too patiently.

Nearly an hour later, the light went out. Though it could no longer be seen from the street, the figure stood at the window, staring malevolently at the imperial palace.

Wolf stomped down the corridor as had become his habit. Nobody took any notice of him, his prowling around the base had been observed and dismissed by everyone.

He fumed as he passed a platoon of guards. If he didn't get in touch with Grey he would be in trouble. It was only a matter of time before someone found out about that sheet of codes that he wasn't supposed to have, and he didn't want to think about what would happen if they did. Leon would be involved, he was fairly sure.

His train of thought was abruptly interrupted when the next to last man in the patrol crashed into him, nearly knocking him over. The guard stammered an apology and dashed off after the rest of the platoon. Wolf stared. After a moment, he realized it had been Grey. After another, he realized that a note had been pushed into his hand.

Bill was waiting in the back corner of the only bar inside the palace complex, that is, the only one Wolf was able to get to.

"It's been a while, Grey." He said, sliding into a seat across from his. "How've you been?"

"First things first." Said Bill, holding out his hand.

Wolf laughed and pulled out a sheet of paper from his pocket. He looked at it for a moment, then spoke again. "These aren't free, you know."

Bill raised an eyebrow. He tried to speak nonchalantly, though warning bells were sounding in the back of his mind. "What's that?"

"I want in." Wolf said, not loudly but very firmly.

"In?"

"With you." Wolf explained, "with the rebellion."

Bill was taken aback. As he tried to recover, Wolf continued. "I fought you guys for three reasons. One was that I was fighting for my life. I was a wanted criminal on five planets, all five of which were against Andross. The second is that I was paid. The third…" he trailed off.

"The third?" Bill prompted.

Wolf shrugged. "It was fun. But now things are different. I'm practically a convict here, even though I've never broken one of Andross's laws. I haven't seen a cent of what's owing to me, even though I've got four or five contracts guaranteeing payment. And let me tell you something, Grey. Being imprisoned in a military base is not at all my idea of fun."

Bill thought for a moment. "How do we know we can trust you?"

"You don't, really." Wolf said, "but isn't that what trust means?"

"I don't know."

"Neither do I. C'mon, you remember me from the academy, you know darn well I can't stand being on the authority's side. I'm an eternal rebel."

"All right." Bill said, accepting the sheet of codes from Wolf. "But what side have you been on then, all these years?"

"My own." Wolf grinned.

"So what side are you on now?"

"Whichever side," he said, "that's trying to get rid of Andross."

  
Chapter 21  
  


You'll love again

I don't know when,

But if you do I know that you'll be happy in the end.

-Emerson, Lake, and Palmer, _Trilogy_  
  


"Calm down." Mind admonished. "I know the codes are important, but you won't make them arrive any faster by driving yourself insane."

"I know. But I can't help worrying about, well, just how things are." Rita fumed, pacing back and forth frantically. "If he doesn't, I mean, if we don't get the codes, then, then, well then what?"

"We'll try some other method. Eventually something will work." Mind said matter-of-factly.

"You're sure?"

"Absolutely."

Rita made an aggravated noise and stormed out of the room.

"I don't see what you're so worried about!" said Katt.

"Oh, it's Bill, and the codes, and, well, I don't know!" Rita said. "If he gets caught then what will happen?" She glared in Katt's general direction. "Bill's already been through hell with Leon before, I don't see how he can keep himself from telling about us. And even if he doesn't, and gets himself killed, we'll be right back where we were before, except we won't have Bill anymore." She trailed off, then turned and left.

"Look, Ri, I'm worried about Bill too," Fox said, "but I don't think you're helping him or anyone else by worrying yourself sick about him."

"Well what am I supposed to do, then?"

"Get ready." Her brother said. "We've got Peppy and Slippy still to get out, and we're going in as soon as we've got the codes. There's nothing you can do now to help Bill, he's beyond our reach. He's on his own until he comes back."

"But, but, what if he doesn't come back? What if he's-"

"Ri, don't you realize that if Bill dies, it is not going to be long at all before we join him?" Fox said, raising an eyebrow. "Either he'll succeed and we'll have a chance of winning, or he'll be killed and we'll have a couple months before we're exterminated."

"So what should I do?" she asked, almost pitifully.

"Take care of anything you still have to do. Things you have to say or tell someone. Why do you think I got married so quickly?" Fox said, turning to the doorway. "Like I said, just get ready." He left, and she listened for a moment to his footsteps receding down the corridor.

"But what if it's already too late?" she whispered to herself.

It was dark in the hanger, under the dormant fighters almost impenetrably so. Only almost, for a figure could still be vaguely seen darting from shadow to shadow.

Bill was unused to darting. It had been years since he had used anything he'd learned in his mandatory espionage course. Not for the first time, he wished that he'd let Fox do this. Then again, Fox would have been recognized and arrested within two minutes if he'd come.

He finally found a fighter that had the same identification as the key Wolf had stolen for him. He started the engine and hoped that Wolf really was sincere about defecting.

If he wasn't, this would probably be a very short trip.

Wolf watched from the window as a scout ship lifted out of the hanger and skimmed low over the perimeter of the compound. It dropped altitude again, flying between the very tops of buildings, to minimize exposure to other aircraft and to people on the ground. At times it would double back, wind around a particular building, or dive down an alley to emerge heading in a different direction.

He certainly knew how to fly evasively, Wolf mused. Time for him to put paid to the pursuit.

He turned and headed for southeast corner of the palace.

General Opprimus had a funny feeling. He didn't like it when that happened.

He glanced out over the city, most of whose inhabitants would be delighted to strangle him if they could.

That wasn't it.

He considered the soldiers, who he humiliated daily and whose lives he was planning to let bleed out on a hundred battlefields to further his own megalomania.

That wasn't it.

He contemplated the prisoners, rabble-rousers, revolutionaries, the antisocial, the disliked. All by their very nature dangerous to his plans, now their lives were a paler shade of hell, thanks to him.

That wasn't it.

He reflected on the rebels, dedicated to his utter annihilation. Some of them lacking parents, wives, husbands, children, siblings, friends, whole families, and with him to thank for it. In their ranks were elite mercenaries, shock troops, fugitive army officers, some of the most formidable tactical minds in the system, highly trained, all bent on his destruction.

That wasn't it either.

He thought of his pursuers, the inevitable avengers that he knew were hunting him relentlessly, and of the confrontation that would come when they did at last find him, the battle for which he was even now preparing without rest.

That still wasn't it.

For a lack of anything else, he turned to the computer and called up random security tapes. Not that there would be anything of interest on them, his brilliant code system would see to that, but he needed to watch something to take his mind off the irrational premonition it seemed to have contracted.

There was a great many guards wandering around, businessmen coming and going. There was an exceptionally boring shot of the Emperor staring into space. Dengar and the emperor's intolerable nephew were arguing in another, and once he came across a very entertaining shot of Powalski in the dungeons. On the whole, however, it was a great deal of nothing at all; long shots of empty corridors and vacant rooms. Eventually he let his mind return to scheming and paid very little attention to what was going on on his screen.

He very nearly missed what he wanted to see.

He wouldn't have noticed anything if not for the cut off. It was showing a perfectly normal scene when suddenly the image disappeared in a mass of static. This was certainly not what was supposed to happen. He rewound the tape hastily.

On second viewing, it seemed much the same. O'Donnell was overseeing the execution of a defeated Cornerian officer. Nothing odd about that, then suddenly the camera stopped recording, and when it resumed O'Donnell was leaving the chamber, just as he should. He watched the tape a third time. Things began to look decidedly suspicious; O'Donnell seemed to be gesturing in a very strange way, and the prisoner was certainly much more talkative than he should have been.

On a hunch, Victor called up the tape of the security room. And there it all was. The guard, ID number 327, sliding his foot under the power cord and then jerking himself forward. The captain immediately replaced the cable, but the damage was done. There was something that that particular guard had not wanted anyone to see, and it had not been seen.

Frantically, Victor paged the guard's C.O. He didn't know where he was. He tried other officers, central information, security. Nobody knew where guard #327 was.  
Even more frantically, he called up the logs of the hangers. There was an unauthorized departure of a light spy ship from the northwest hanger, but it seemed the alarm there had somehow been disconnected.

Even more frantically, he grabbed for the general alarm. If nobody knew where this guard was, then he'd just have to be found.

Wolf reached the base of the radio tower and pulled open the door of a small, corrugated steel shed. He was now at the heart of the Imperial communication network.

The single guard inside stood up, yawning. He paused in mid yawn when he noticed the long dagger Wolf held.

The dagger point made a simple twist, and the guard fell dead.

A speaker in the corner blared, "Attention all personnel. This is General Opprimus. Fighter squads E9, E10, E11, F5, N24, and special squads Starwolf, Saph-"

The general's voice died out in a crackle of static as Wolf proceeded to smash the communication equipment.

"The heck was that?" Pigma said, holding up a hoof to stop the argument.

"Wha? Oh that?" Andrew said, glancing at the speaker. "I dunno."

"Some kind of drill?"

"I guess."

They shrugged and resumed the argument. 

Everyone in the base was very puzzled at hearing an order begin and stop halfway through. After a moment they dismissed it as a technical difficulty and went about their business. 

"-to hangers and to apprehend and destroy a light T-class ship stolen by a rebel spy. That is all." Victor sat back and waited for the fighters to pour out and annihilate the interloper. He waited for the scream of engines and laser bursts to mingle with the scream of a dying enemy. He waited for the rush of feet towards the ships as they launched themselves into the dying sunlight. He waited for the nitros boosters to shriek like predatory birds as they hunted.

He was very upset when he realized he was waiting in vain.

He repeated his orders. There was no effect. He threatened. Nothing. He screamed. Absolutely nothing happened. Not one of the soldiers paid him the least mind.  
He was even more upset.

Bill had gotten about a mile outside the city when he decided to contact the station.  
Rita, who had the current watch, jumped at the voice out of the computer speakers. "Bill? BILL!?" She shouted.

"Ow," Bill said, "you don't need to blow out the speakers."

"You did it!" she shouted, sounding as if she were trying to keep from laughing. "You really did it!"

"Yep, I-" he broke off suddenly as his wing exploded in flame.

  
Chapter 22  
  


"Goodbye, my love. A thousand times goodbye."

-Shakespeare, _Romeo_ _and_ _Juliet_

Bill shot an apprehensive glance back over his shoulder. A single jet was following him, swerving from side to side. Bill prepared to swing around and engage the pursuer. He gripped the control bar firmly and banked sharply.

"Eat this!" he shouted, squeezing where the trigger should have been.

That was when he remembered that spy ships usually didn't have weapons.

Another round of shots peppered the ship. He rolled sideways, and prayed that he still had the edge in speed.

Victor Opprimus was of the opinion that anything was possible, given enough power. If you had the strength, you could do quite literally anything. That, presumably, included piloting a fighter and shooting down spies. Whether he currently had enough power for that, he'd soon find out.

So would the spy.

Bill swore under his breath. The pilot chasing him wasn't particularly skillful, but he was relentless. Without being able to fight back, there really wasn't anything he could do besides dodge and hope that the other pilot wasn't a very good shot.

Victor allowed himself a grim smile as he scored another hit. Really, this was quite enjoyable. He ought to do this sometime without interplanetary secrets riding on his success or failure.

Something on the spy plane began smoking densely. Victor decided to experiment with the 'lock on' function labeled on the control stick.

The distinct warning beep of an enemy lock sounded in Bill's headset. He somersaulted automatically. He stared hoping it hadn't been a bomb when he was halfway through the loop.

It hadn't. He was fine.

For now.

The pursuer hit him again.

"Ha!" shouted General Opprimus. "If you want something done right, do it yourself!"

A warning light over Bill's head began flashing insistently. Eventually he figured out that it meant his nitros tank was pierced and was leaking. Without that he couldn't use the boost.

He'd lost his only advantage.

_"And this is Bill." Fox said as he came in the door._

_"Nice to meet you, Cadet." Said James McCloud._

_Bill felt his eyes bulge out of his face. He'd gotten used to being the roommate of his childhood hero's son, and arguing with his daughter, but that didn't stop him being amazed.  
"Wow." Was all he could think to say._

The ship was beginning to resist turning left; he did a barrel roll to force himself out of the line of fire, then tried to wrestle the stolen ship back under control.

_He'd managed to stammer out his name, and, lacking anything else to say, asked his hero for some advice for his life._

_James smiled enigmatically. "Well, what do want to do?"_

_Ignoring Fox's fatuous expression, Bill said he guessed he would probably be in the military._

The ship was listing heavily now. He felt every blow on the hull when the enemy pilot's lasers inevitably found their mark. A general alarm began blaring but he shut it out, he didn't need to be told he was in trouble.

_"I'll tell you just what I told Fox," James had advised, " 'When you're in a war you can't win, fight well, then die well.' The next best thing to good victory is a good death." The mercenary smiled. "Just get what you need to do done. Then worry about surviving."_

Okay, thought Bill, then I know what I need to do.

Rita had been listening to nameless explosions when Bill's voice cut through the static. "Rita, I'm in trouble. I'm going to read you the codes."

"What?" she shouted, panicking slightly.

"Don't argue! It has to be this way, I have to do this!"

She didn't respond.

"I'll read the codes now. Write these down! Inflammatory, frozen, stronger-"

The ship was rocked by another explosion.

"deny," he continued, "worshipful, anathema-"

He dove and banked barely missing a radio tower.

"-archon." He finished. "There's just one more thing."

One of his engines began to fail.

"I know you love Fox, and wish that he loved you." He said slowly, "I know I could never hope to deserve you, and so I've kept this hidden from everyone until now."

"Rita, I love you."

Two more laser bolts impacted on the ship, and a long crack appeared in the windshield. It seemed to Bill that there was a strange rushing in his ears.

"There's nothing you can do for me; there's nothing I need from you. I just wanted you to know that I loved you, more than you'll ever know."

"Wait, Bill-" she began.

"I can't, Rita. My time is up." He said heavily. "Goodbye."

The spy ship was slowing drastically. Victor lined it up carefully in his sights, and laughed.

He'd always enjoyed killing things.

Lasers flashed through the ship as it fell apart in a ball of fire. A few fragments reached the ground, but most of the debris was disintegrated by the explosion.

When Soul got up ten minutes later to take his shift on the console, he found Rita, clutching a piece of paper with seven words on it, crying her heart out all over the controls.

Victor landed the fighter he'd hotwired carefully, breathing heavily. He was thoroughly exhilarated. He'd have them make this ship into his personal transport.

Let's see, he mused, the first thing was to get the communications back up, and then decentralize them. Under no circumstances was something like that ever to happen again.  
The next thing was to deal with O'Donnell. He allowed himself to dwell on a number of amusing possibilities, most of them involving equipment borrowed from that Powalski character. And then it hit him, the perfect thing to do to a traitor.

Nothing.

As long as Wolf was still in the base, which he always had to be, Victor had a link to the rebels. They would certainly contact him again, probably they'd use him to try smuggling the codes out again, as he had so brilliantly killed their spy.

He decided to be ready when O'Donnell was ready.

Why settle for one traitor when you could have the whole nest?

Chapter 23

Who can say if your love grows

As your heart chose?

Only time.

-Enya, _Only_ _Time_

"Where are they?!" Leon demanded, becoming angry.

"How should I know?" Peppy managed to whisper, "Even if I did, why would I tell you?"

Leon snatched the knife backwards out of the aging pilot's arm and turned to the opposite cell, his eyes flashing.

"Mrph!" Slippy said, and promptly fainted.

Leon glared at Peppy and stormed out of the prisons.

Victor brooded in his office. The exhilaration of last night's fight had worn off, and left him worried. Someone had gotten into the base; someone had tried, likely unsuccessfully, to get a hold of the codes. Andross's administration had deadly enemies.  
The thing that worried Victor was that he did too.

He knew they were following him and hunting him; they always were. They'd been after him for years now, and it was foolish to hope they'd be put off by the Imperial armies. They'd probably beaten more formidable challenges as kids. It was only a matter of time before they found him, and the inevitable confrontation came.

Every thought in his mind was geared to either avoiding that fight, or winning it.

There was one thing he dreaded, though. He knew Andross had enemies, it was obvious. One doesn't become Emperor of a solar system without making quite a few of those. He knew those enemies were competent; you didn't get that close to stealing valuable security codes if you weren't. The one thing that could spell certain doom for him was the union of Andross's enemies, and those that were hunting him.

He decided it was time to begin the final stage of his plans, before the hunters did.

The sun set over Corneria city, dragging the shadows of the buildings out over the slum.

In particular, they dragged over the roof of a tenement, and over the figure standing on that roof.

The figure had spent most of the day in the bar on the ground floor, attempting to forget the reason he was here through the heavy use of liquid stimulants.

It hadn't worked very well.

After that he'd tried going over his equipment and guns, of which he had enough to stock a small army. All that this accomplished was to make clear to him how much he'd just drunk. And so he was up here, on the roof, staring at the skyscraper that rose above Andross' palace. In there, he thought, is the person responsible for what's happened to me, and for what I am now. That's the place where I settle this. I wonder if he knows I'm coming? I doubt it.

The figure stayed on the roof for another hour, until he noticed the moon beginning to rise. Then he went in.

Rita stayed in her room for four days, only emerging to seize small portions of food and disappear again.

On the fifth day she left the door open.

Fox entered cautiously, hoping he wasn't going to get beat up. "Ri?"

She was sitting on the edge of the bed with one foot crossed under her, staring at nothing on the opposite wall. She looked up as her brother came in, then turned away. "Go away." She said, both quietly and vehemently.

"There's nothing you could have done, Ri-" Fox began, but she cut him off.

"Shows what you know." She snorted, "As if I'd stay in here for half a week over a fit of guilt."

"Then what-?"

"Stupid!" she said, jumping up and facing him, "Bill loved me! He's dead, and he loved me!" her lip began quivering, but she managed to keep herself angry. "There, happy now? That's my problem, and you can take that, and wallow in it, and go tell it to your, to your, wife!" she spat. She swayed for a moment, clenching and unclenching her fists, and then something inside her snapped. Rita burst into tears and fell into her brother's arms.  
Fox held her for a moment, then set her back on the bed. She continued to hold on to his hand, crying frantically. Fox hesitated for a moment, then sat down next to her.

"Shh. Don't worry," he told her, "If Bill really loved you-"

"IF?!" she screamed, angry again.

"-then he wouldn't care if you never even saw him. He'd still try, of course, but that wouldn't matter. What he would have wanted was to go on thinking about you. So all you need to do is to go on thinking about him, and you'll be making him happier by that than if you spent the rest of your life in here."

She pushed him away and sniffed back a fresh round of tears. For a long time she didn't say anything, and Fox got up and went to the door. "For the longest time, I thought it was you I was in love with." She said, "Maybe I only wanted to be in love with you, or with the idea of being in love with you. Maybe you replaced Dad for me."

"And what about Bill?"

"I always thought he was nice, and considerate, and really kinda cute, but I didn't realize I loved him until it was too late…"

Fox looked at her for a moment, then left.

"Is it done?" Fox said.

"Not quite," Mind answered, "We'll be through in a moment."

Katt looked around. "Where's Fara?" 

"In bed," Fox said, "She offered to take over Rita's shift for the last few days."

"We're getting through." Mind said.

The screen lit up, filled with static slowly clearing. The face of an aging female badger became clear through the static, the sort of face you'd expect on an unmarried aunt who perhaps wrote an advice column. It wasn't smiling.

"Hmm," commented Mrs. Alexandra Trine from the screen, "I see the rumors are true, then."

"Rumors?"

"Of your escape, which is one of the things I want to talk about."

"I take it, then," Fox said, assessing the leader of the Katinian resistance, "that you've been expecting me to call."

"Yes. And I've got a few things to say to you. But you go first; you called me."

"I will." Fox stood up. "We, my organization, are entering the final stages of planning for our assault on Andross. We called you because we have reason to believe you have contacts with nearly every rebel organization in the system."

"Oh, so you have someone who can find these things out, do you?"

"We especially need to get in touch with the Fortunan Resistance, and quickly."

"Which one?"

"Which one? I thought there was only-"

"There's the People's League of Fortuna, the New Dawn Society, and The Sons of Fortuna."

"And which of those is headed by Alistar Phoenix?"

"None of them. What are you blathering about?"

"Never mind, then." Fox paused. He was a little perturbed by the tone she seemed to be taking. "We want to organize a simultaneous, system-wide-"

"Okay, that's enough from you, for now anyway." Trine cut him off, "Now you listen to me. So far as I can tell, you've done nothing but sit there making wild assumptions about Fortuna. You've destroyed no bases, assassinated no generals, raided no convoys."

"We were about-"

"I even see here," Trine shouted him down, "That two of your wingmen are still in detainment in Andross's complex on Corneria."

"What's your point?" asked Fox, beginning to get angry.

"I don't intend to risk the lives of any of my people or those on other planets on your plans until you give some proof that you're capable of leading. You seem to have got some fame, justify it. End transmission." The screen blacked out.

"In other words," Fox said told the blank screen, in a cold fury, "You won't help me until you think I don't need your help."

The opening door woke Fara. Fox was so angry that he didn't even notice.  
After he'd stomped around the room a few times, flung his shirt into the corner, flopped down on the bed, kicked off his boots and snarled at them, and thrown his head back on the pillow he seemed to feel a little better. "I take it the call didn't go well?" She asked.

He glanced sideways at her, scowling. "No, it did not." He growled, "Trine seems to think one becomes an elite mercenary by lounging around spaceport bars and trying to get other people to do your work for you." He snapped off the end of the sentence as if he wanted to break it.

"She's got you mixed up with Falco, then." Fara said, "Oops. Sorry, Hon, I didn't mean-"

"That's okay. It's probably the sort of thing he would have said." Fox sighed, "Everyone seems to think I'm either an instant cure for any problem or a conceited idiot who keeps getting in the way."

"I don't" She said quietly.

"Oh?"

"Nope." She said, running one paw through the fur on his chest.

"What do you think I am?" he asked, putting his arm around her.

"Fox McCloud, My husband." She pulled him closer to her.

"You know what?" he said.

"Hmm?"

"I love you."

They didn't talk much more that evening.

Leon went up to Andross's office to report that there was nothing to report. Peppy still refused to give any information and Slippy had the nerves of a sack of wet sugar. He went to pieces and started blabbering nonsense whenever Leon was present. There was nothing to be gained from either one.

The secretary told him to go in, and he prepared himself for the usual interminable wait at the end of a line of suppliants, sycophants, and supplicating sycophants.

Andross wasn't even in the room. The imperial throne was vacant, and there was a general of some sort sitting in a chair to the right, filling out forms.

Leon approached slowly, unsure of what to do. "Excuse me, General, uh?"

"General Opprimus. What is it?"

"Just a routine report, sir." Leon said, indicating the file he carried, "I'm supposed to give this to Andross…"

"I'll take that." The general said tartly, "His Ultimacy isn't well; I'm deputizing."

"I see." Said Leon. He left without giving the form to the General.

Victor watched him leave, and returned to the forms with less than all of his attention.

Fara woke up the next morning with her head on Fox's shoulder. He was looking at with something like laughter in the back of his eyes.

"Thanks. I feel much better now." he said, snickering.

By the time she'd thought of a suitable comeback, he was up and getting dressed.

"What happens today?" she asked, yawning.

"Trine thinks she can blow me off by telling me to do the impossible." He shrugged. "We'll have to call her bluff."

Chapter 24  
  


The knight shook his head firmly. " 'Tis ever thus. When the time comes that matters must be settled, then all who fight do gather together, though they must come from the ends of the earth."

-Christopher Stasheff, _Her_ _Majesty's_ _Wizard_

A figure disappeared into its room just a few minutes before sunset.

It came out again with guns, grenades, lockpicks, flashlights, flares, homing devices, ammo, and a surly disposition.

It went to the roof and mounted a small hoverbike, which it headed towards the center of town and the Imperial palace.

Tonight was the time it had been waiting for.

"Everything ready?" Fox asked.

"For the tenth time, yes." Said Soul, "But we can't leave yet."

"I know, I know. I just don't like to wait."

"You and me both." Soul grumbled, "But hey, it's only till tonight."

Victor looked up. Was that the time?

He stood up quickly. Can't be wasting time, he thought, I've got a lot that has to be done tonight.

"Wolf!" shouted Leon, who was beginning to suspect his commander was ignoring him on purpose.

Wolf's only response was to get up and leave the room.

Leon decided his suspicions were confirmed.

Wolf was walking as quickly as he could without looking like he was trying to walk quickly. Leon, not caring whether he ran or not, sprinted after him and grabbed his shoulder. "Wolf! We need to talk!"

"Really?" Wolf growled, "Got bored with your creepy torture thing, have you?"

"Will you shut up about the torture?! This is important!"

Leon pushed a somewhat surprised Wolf along the corridor and into the bathroom at one end.

"Uh, Leon?" Wolf said, looking around cautiously. He went from cautious to downright alarmed when Leon locked the door.

"I don't want to be overheard." Leon explained, making sure the room was completely empty.

"And so we came in here?"

"Nobody ever bugs a restroom."

"Okay, then." Wolf said, exasperated. "What did you want to say?"

"First, I'm not about to apologize for the torture. I like doing it, and you have nothing to do with that." He stopped "And anyway, it doesn't mean I'm a bad person, does it?"

"Well, since bad people are people who do bad things-"

"But that has nothing to do with what I wanted to tell you." He looked very hard at his commander, as if willing him to understand. "Wolf, something's wrong here. There's this general Opprimus, and he seems to have gotten Andross under his thumb. He's keeping him under control somehow, drugs maybe. I did some digging around and he's got no background, no history at all, he just showed up at the enlistment office on MacBeth one day. If we get some concrete evidence that he's trying to take over to the other generals, they can stop him. And I wish you'd quit trying to interrupt when I'm talking."

Wolf closed his mouth, deciding it was easier to just let Leon finish.

"What we need to do is this. You shadow him this evening. He hardly ever leaves the base, so you don't need to worry about that."

"And you?"

"I'll sneak into his quarters and look through documents, see if I can get some concrete evidence. That's why you're following him. If he starts to head back to his quarters, you tell me on the coms."

Wolf prepared to tell Leon he'd known about General Opprimus for months. He got ready to tell him that it was his fault he hadn't been able to do anything about it. He was about to say that this plan was one of the stupidest thing he'd heard of for years, when someone rattled the door of the bathroom.

Leon glanced over his shoulder and reached for the lock. "We'll talk more tonight."

Andrew opened the envelope nervously. Usually when he got sent one of these it meant that his uncle was mad at him for something, like getting drunk with Wolf or yelling at some general or something. The more official the envelope looked, the angrier his uncle was. This one looked disturbingly official.

Inside there was nothing but a short memo, on nondescript stationary. Andrew started sweating. This was the most official thing he'd ever seen. He hardly dared read it.

The message itself, however, was scarcely threatening- "Mr. Orkiney; please come down to storage bunker G-14 on level B-5 tonight at 20:00 hours. All will be explained." There was no signature.

Andrew frowned. All will be explained? All of what? Oh well, in case it was a trap he'd take along a bunch of guards, and if it wasn't, hey, at least it would be something to do.

The figure glanced around and dropped from the hoverbike. He'd leave it here. If he came back to it, well enough. If he didn't, then he probably wouldn't be needing it anymore.

He loosened most of the screws on a rooftop air vent. For once he was glad for all the training they'd made him take that had seemed so superfluous at the time.

He inspected the mouth of the vent carefully. In less than an hour he'd be in there, fighting for his life, hopefully until he reached the one responsible for what had happened to him; to all of them. He had no doubt that most of the rest were dead, he was most likely the only one left.

He didn't intend to disappoint them.

  
Chapter 25  
  


"We hate dying," said Turnbull, with composure, "but we hate you even more."

-G.K. Chesterton, _The_ _Ball and the Cross_

Andrew tried to stride along the corridor purposefully, they way Wolf did. He didn't really succeed. He could tell the guards behind him knew what he was doing, and were laughing behind their paws at him. Stupid soldiers! He'd show them to snicker at him, he'd have them demoted and court-martialed and-

He realized suddenly that he'd nearly walked right past storage bunker G-14. It didn't exactly stand out. None of the storage rooms did.

He went in, letting two of the guards open the door first. He couldn't see the corners of the room; the only light in the room came from a brazier in the exact center of the floor. He could make out a large flat rectangular object, about six feet long. Also the seemed to be an arch on the far wall, made of rough stones set directly against the concrete.

"Mr. Orkiney." Said a voice, "Good of you to come."

A black panther in a general's uniform stepped out of the shadows. Andrew thought he looked familiar. Of course, he was the one who had been helping Uncle Andross lately. What was his name again?

"What's going on here?" he challenged, "Why did you call me?"

General Opprimus didn't answer. He merely stared disinterestedly in the general direction of Andrew and the guards. Andrew blinked in puzzlement, but the guards stiffened; one of them swallowed heavily. The one nearest the door closed it, locked it, and gave the key to the panther. The rest grabbed Andrew and held his wrists.

"A word of advice, Mr. Orkiney," said the Panther, "always make sure those you trust aren't on your enemy's side." He glanced at the guards. "Prepare him."

"I'm in position." Reported Soul's voice through the com. "What now?"

"You put in the codes?"

"Of course."

"Do what you do best." answered Mind, "Create confusion."

"Gladly," Soul grinned, his eye lighting on a skylight ten feet away.

John Tevrels, security officer, was firmly convinced that his job of security officer was much safer than going into the military proper.

Ten seconds later he was beginning to question some of his assumptions.

Lounging behind the front desk of the northeast entrance foyer, his favorite place to lounge, he had an excellent view of the black-cloaked figure that crashed through the skylight two and a half stories up. He had an excellent view of the way the person dispatched the entire regiment he landed on, without firing a single shot. He was able to examine every detail of the way he knocked out three of his fellow security guards who were firing from behind pillars and in corners. It was really a shame that he was too frightened to appreciate it.

He hid under the desk and hoped the black-cloaked figure didn't have an excellent view of him.

"You sure?" said Soul, puzzled, "I would think we wouldn't want that to happen."

"Just do it already!" Mind shouted.

"Well excuse me! Sheesh, keep your hair on." Soul said, "I'm doing it," and he pressed the button marked 'alarm.'

A shadowed figure froze in his progress through the air vents as the intruder alert went off. He assumed they'd found him, and nerved himself to take as many Imperial soldiers with him as he could. He nerved himself for several minutes, when the 'all-clear' signal blew.

The figure relaxed, took a deep breath, and continued.

Mind removed her hands from the keyboard where she'd hacked the alarm system controls to set off the 'all clear.' Coolly, she signaled Fox to enter the complex.

She turned to Katt sitting next to her. Fox had insisted someone be left with the ship to pick them up if necessary. Since Katt had by far the least hand to hand combat skills, she was chosen, or as she put it, stuck. She was currently facing the window with her shoulders slumped, refusing to respond to anything.

Mind took her computer and dropped out the bottom hatchway. If Katt wanted to sulk, let her. As long as she did her job, she could sulk as much as she wanted.

Wolf paced back and forth in front of the door to Storage Bunker G-14. He knew General Opprimus was in there, but the problem was that Wolf wasn't. He couldn't watch him if he couldn't see him, could he?

"Wolf?" said the radio Leon had given him. "I'm outside the room now, I'll be going in soon. Call me if he goes into the north wing."

"Right." Wolf muttered, wishing he could use a similar device on the General. Hey, wait a minute.

He dashed to the security room, and punched out the guard there. He gloated slightly as he sat down. With these controls, he could watch everyone in the base at once.  
He called up the camera for G-14, and sat back to make himself comfortable.

"I seem to be spending an awful lot of time down here." Fox said, as they turned the corner to cells 14.9 and 5.9 and he punched in the seven codes, "This is becoming repetitive."

Fara shook her head and put a finger to her lips. She opened the cells with a key card Mind had made for them.

Fara undid Slippy's handcuffs and shook him awake. "It's you, isn't it?" he said slowly, blinking, "Oh, g-good, I was afraid it was Leon ag-g-gain." Then his voice cracked and he fainted.

Fara sighed heavily.

Fox was appalled at the state Peppy was in. He was covered with cuts and bruises, some of them looked quite serious. But then, he reflected, he himself probably hadn't looked much better himself after Leon's ministrations.

"James?" Peppy whispered as he awoke.

"Nope," said Fox, "just me. Let's get you out of here."

Soul was beginning to get bored, Fighting for his life was fun and all, but these soldiers were so ridiculously predictable. They would simply run at him, maybe try a couple shots which invariably missed because of the simple fact that they were still running, and they'd go right past as he dodged to the side. Sometimes they'd go over on their own, if not, it rarely took more than a single blow to knock them out.

He decided that the essence of confusion was unpredictability, and that he'd produced enough of both here.

He shot out all the security cameras, knocked over one last guard for good measure, and took off down a hall.

Wolf was watching General Opprimus with growing distaste. Not that he particularly liked Andrew, but this was ridiculous.

The panther looked around the room, walked off-camera for a moment, then returned. He glanced at the camera, and frowned.

The screen went dead. Wolf panicked.

Fox heard the sound of fighting up ahead. This was not according to plan.

"What should we do?" he asked to no one in particular.

"Go back?" ventured Fara, sounding unsure of herself.

"Split up." Peppy said firmly.

"Hide!" Slippy squealed, diving behind a doorway.

They followed his example as a platoon of soldiers rushed past. Fox followed them a short distance. The sound of their feet could be heard for a short distance, then turned to gunfire and the sound of fists and feet making contact with persons. This too stopped abruptly, to be replaced by a single pair of boots coming towards them.

Fox backed up, to the others. Slippy was looking around frantically, Fara was chewing her lip, and Peppy looked grimly determined. Fox turned back to the footsteps, which had almost reached the corner, and slowly drew his blaster.

Soul stepped out into the hall. He watched them stare at him for a moment, then said "What?"

Katt looked out the window, bored out of her mind. It didn't help that she was continually envisioning the others being found and killed brutally.

She noticed that Pigma was running across the compound below, at the head of a very large body of troops (who didn't seem to have to work very hard to keep up.) She noticed he had a very specialized sniper rifle over his back.

She grabbed for her com, only to remember that she hadn't brought it.

Cursing herself with expletives she would have smacked anyone else for using, she dropped out of the ship and went to find the others.

Leon was disturbed. His com wasn't working. Neither was his radio, his computer, or his watch. Every electric device he carried had stopped working as soon as he had set foot in General Opprimus's quarters.

That wasn't all. The door had locked itself very firmly behind him, and defied any attempt at picking or forcing. It was if it had some sort of conscious ill will toward him.

That wasn't all. The front room of the General's Quarters was normal enough, but the bedroom, kitchen, and bathroom were downright creepy.

The kitchen was bare. There were no dishes in the cupboard, no food in the refrigerator. Not even an ice cube.

The bathroom was ice cold. The tiles were frigid to the touch. The pipes were covered with a light dusting of frost.

The bedroom was the worst. The bed hadn't been slept in for weeks, there was actually a thick coat of dust on it. Several hastily installed bookshelves covered one wall, these were full of books written in some language Leon had never heard in letters he'd never seen. The only thing on the table was a corroded copper dish, too shallow to be a bowl and too deep to be anything else. In the bottom were some brownish-red stains Leon recognized all too well.

Leon decided he didn't want to be there when the General returned. What bothered him was that he didn't seem to have any choice.

He wished he were still in touch with Wolf.

Wolf had spent the last three minutes running back and forth in front of the door to G-14. When that hadn't worked he leaned against the wall and tried to calm himself down. He didn't succeed anymore there than he had in convincing the door to open.

On a hunch, he went back to the control room. Though the camera he'd been using was still dead, he noticed Fox, the cool squirrel, and some other people on another monitor. He watched them split up and head down different hallways.

It occurred to him that he was on their side now.

He hoped they realized that.

Chapter 26  
  


"Then this filthy abomination," said Doctor Dimble, "is real—not only a dream."

-C.S. Lewis, _That Hideous Strength_

When Andrew came to, he discovered that the low oblong object he'd seen on the far side of the brazier was an altar.

What worried him was that he was tied to it.

From here he had an excellent view of the arch on the wall. Unfortunately he could make nothing more of it now than before. It looked like a stone arch, about eight feet high, which was built against the wall. There were a few markings written above it, but other than that it was bafflingly ordinary.

Further speculation was cut off by the appearance of General Opprimus and Andrew's former guards. The brazier lit his face from below with a dull, red, unsteady light that made him look even more threatening. The panther smiled, and held out his hand.

One of the guards put a knife into it. Andrew became very worried.

Soul walked easily down the hallway. He had plenty of time, everything they'd come to do had been accomplished, and he intended to amuse himself before they left. He wasn't sure what he would do, but it would be reckless, foolhardy, and daring, he decided.

Wolf stepped out of a door ahead and blocked his path.

Soul decided he'd just been provided with his entertainment.

"I'm coming with you." Wolf said quickly, to forestall the rebel's attacking him.

"What?"

"I'm coming with you!"

"Really?" asked Soul, puzzled for a moment. "Oh, I see. You're the one who gave the codes to Bill, aren't you?"

"Yes. But before I go…"

"Is there a catch?"

"We have a score to settle." Wolf growled. "First you tied me up in my underwear, then you humiliated me in front of my troops." he adopted a fighting stance.

Soul was silent for a long moment. "Very well," he said, throwing off his cloak, "You have courage, and that is one thing I respect."

Most pilots, Andrew and Pigma for instance, never bothered much with ground combat training. Wolf thought this stupid to the point of ludicrousness. He believed in fighting to his absolute last breath, and there was no way he could do that if he was unable to fight when on the ground, was there? Though no master, he was arguably formidable at hand to hand combat, the more so because most people did not expect him to be. He hoped the cool squirrel was no different.

Wolf started by trying a simple punch. That was blocked. He tried a feint and cross combo. Blocked. A quick one two three combined with an uppercut. Blocked. A spin kick with frantic sucker punches. Blocked. He tried moves he'd only seen on TV, and moves he thought up on the spur of the moment. Blocked. He tried them all again, then tried them backwards, then combined them.

Blocked.

Effortlessly blocked.

The squirrel stepped back and smiled. The smile made it utterly unbelievable. Wolf could imagine someone taking an attack like that, but not smiling afterward.

Then the squirrel went on the offensive. Wolf didn't properly see what happened. He could tell that his opponent was attacking, and then there was a sort of whirlwind in front of him. He tried to block it, but it seemed like his hands were moving in slow motion. He punched forward, hoping the fury of the squirrel's attack would leave his guard down.

His foe was no longer there.

Soul landed behind Wolf, spun around and kicked.

Wolf stumbled and fell to one knee, but he kept his guard up. Soul was impressed. "You do have courage." He said.

Wolf didn't answer. He was trying to decide whether to be angry or awed.

Soul drew back his fist.

"What do you think you're doing?" Mind shouted.

Soul turned to her. "Uh, fighting?"

"Why?" said the mink, raising her eyebrows belligerently.

"Well, I-"

Mind made an impatient noise in the back of her throat. "You two stop wasting time and come with me." She suddenly reminded Wolf irresistibly of his fifth-grade teacher. "And stop being idiotic." She stomped out of the room.

Soul shook his head and followed her. After a moment, Wolf did too.

General Opprimus muttered something sonorous under his breath. The guards all stood at attention; hardly even seeming to breathe. Andrew didn't breathe either, though probably not for the same reason.

"-and if thou hast the power, then thou canst tear the veil." Victor recited to the air. "I shall gain the power and thou shalt employ it."

He flourished the knife and Andrew whimpered. He was not gagged, but his fear did just as well.

"The Flame that Destroys!" intoned Victor, and cut Andrew's right ankle, just above the veins.

Andrew screamed. The knife had stung like acid. An itchy numbness went crawling up his leg from the cut.

Victor didn't wait for the screaming to die down. "The Despair that Benumbs!" and he stabbed Andrew's left wrist. "The Hunger that Corrupts!" and stabbed his right wrist.

Andrew writhed as much as the bonds allowed. This was worse than anything he could have imagined.

"The Weight that Smothers!" The left ankle was bleeding now. Andrew saw the knife approaching his face, and made a supreme effort to break through the pain. "No! No, please!" He gasped.

"The Void that Obliterates!" Victor hissed, and ran the knife across Andrew's throat.

Andrew felt himself growing dizzy; he was having definite trouble focusing his eyes. It was all wrong, what they said about dying, Andrew thought, the pain doesn't just fade. It dies with you. He thought he could vaguely make out Victor's form moving the knife downward once more.

"The Shadow that will Conquer!" said General Opprimus, and drove the blade into Andrew's heart.

The guards impassively watched Victor dip a single finger in the blood that pooled on the top of the stone slab. He traced some sort of glyph on the wall inside the arch, then stepped back and studied it. After a long time, apparently satisfied, he turned and strode out of the room, rubbing the back of his hand as if it itched. He let the door slam behind him.

One by one, the soldiers slumped to the ground, dead.

Peppy stopped short when they came to the main throne room.

Fox had intended to avoid this room and get back to the vent, but now there were soldiers between them and their escape. He hoped they could take a longer path to the same place and avoid fighting. "C'mon," he urged, "We need to get going!"

"This, this room…" Peppy said.

When Andross had first relocated to Corneria, he'd left the building plans to his staff. What were they there for if not to do his work for him? That's what they were paid for, wasn't it? The only exception was this room, which he directed to be an exact duplicate of the corresponding room in his former palace on Venom.

Which meant that it was the same room in which Peppy had watched Andross torture James McCloud to death, six years ago.

Peppy shook himself free. He had to go on. "Yeah, sorry Fox." he muttered. He took a couple steps forward, then collapsed backwards with his hands pressed to his stomach.

The second shot everyone saw.

Leon was standing in the center of the main room when General Opprimus came back.

They both looked at eachother for a split second, then Leon made a dash for the door.

Victor gestured, and it slammed in Leon's face.

Leon swallowed hard. "It's not what you think," he began.

"I'm sure it's not." Said Victor, "But on the whole I really don't care very much. Have a seat."

Leon found himself flung against a chair in the corner. He saw Victor advancing toward him, and tried to move. He couldn't. His arms and legs seemed held down, as if they were tied there.

"You believe in pain as a teacher, am I right?" Victor was saying. "An excellent philosophy. One I often find very useful myself." He raised his hand.

Leon felt himself lifted out of the chair and slammed down against the floor. Victor smiled. Leon flew up against the ceiling, and then again to the floor where he lay breathing heavily.

General Opprimus gestured, then clenched his left hand around the back of his right, as if it hurt.

Leon found himself pulled up by nothing and thrown against the wall where he stuck. His hands flew back to it and he found he couldn't move forward at all. It was almost as if a giant fist were trying to crush him into the wall. Panicking, he stammered, "How is this possible?"

General Opprimus stepped forward and stopped with his face mere inches from Leon's. "This? This is nothing. You can't even imagine the things of which I'm truly capable." he whispered.


	3. Book 3: Virtutis

Chapter 27

There is always this paradox about courage; that one must be a little careless of one's life even in order to keep it.

-G.K. Chesterton, _All Things Considered_

Soul dashed down the hall after splitting up with Mind. He stopped short when he got to the intersection.

There were no signs of any kind. He had no idea where he was. A couple of quick glances failed to find any difference in any of them.

In the end he picked a random direction and kept running.

Wolf rushed along the corridor, reflecting that they weren't just cool. They were fast.

He turned a corner, cursing, and ran directly into Katt.

"What are you doing here?" They both said in unison.

"I'm looking for Fox and the others." Said Katt, yanking out her gun.

"So am I." Said Wolf.

"Ha!" she said, and poked the gun in his ribs.

"Hey!" Wolf said, "I just want to get out of here! I want to go with you guys!"

"Yeah," said Katt, dripping sarcasm, "and I bet you don't want to betray us at all. "

"I am for you! What do I have to do to prove it?"

She looked at him very coldly. "Howbout you die?"

Suddenly a shot rang out from the room and the end of the hall. Someone shouted, and there was a loud scuffling noise.

Katt's eyes got very large, "Fox!" She glanced at Wolf, then ran down the hall toward the gunfire.

So did Wolf.

"Ya like that, junior?" Pigma laughed from wherever he was. "Maybe I got one for you, too!"

Fox pulled Peppy behind a pillar and signaled Fara and Slippy to duck as well. Another shot glanced off the floor next to him.

"Doesn't matter." Pigma drawled, "I got fifty clips up here, we can keep doin' this all night." He jerked his thumb to the soldiers brought with him. "Go get 'em." He said, "I'll cover for you."

"Fox," Peppy rasped, coughing.

"Don't talk. We'll get you out of here."

Peppy laughed weakly, breaking into a coughing fit halfway through. "No good, Fox." He said, "I know that one. That's what I told your father."

Another shot from Pigma lanced by.

"I'm sorry I couldn't help you, Fox. I promised James I'd look out for you, but all that seems to happen is that you save me." He winced and swallowed hard, "I tried to help you, I just don't think I can anymore."

"Stop that," Fox said, "of course you're getting out of here."

"He got me right through the gut. I'm finished anyway." He gripped the grenade he'd picked up behind his back. "You don't have to save me anymore."

"Stop talking like that!"

Peppy shook his head slowly. "You're so much like James. That's exactly what he would have said." He took a very deep breath and winced again. Fox followed the line of his eyes. He was looking at Fara, crouching behind the next pillar. "You were right, you know," Peppy gasped, "She does look like your mother. Take care of her."

"If you don't stop talking like that…"

"What?" the hare laughed, "You'll kill me?" He looked straight into Fox's eyes. "Goodbye."

He jumped out and threw the grenade into the group of advancing soldiers.

Fox heard Pigma fire again through the explosion, and then Peppy didn't move back to the pillar.

The two remaining soldiers from Pigma's troop followed Fox's example and ducked behind pillars.

Unluckily for them those pillars were right next to the door Wolf and Katt came through.

Pigma heard the shots and fired in their direction, clipping Wolf on the shoulder. He howled in pain and dropped to the floor, scrabbling for cover. Katt reached to help him, finally realizing that he was, in fact, on their side.

Pigma realized for the first time who he'd just shot. Then he shrugged and raised the rifle again.

That's when the tremors started.

It took a moment for Fox to realize the floor was shaking. He had thought it was his rage shaking him. When he found it wasn't, he began to be alarmed.

Wolf shook aside his pain long enough to decide that something was very wrong. He crawled to the next pillar and lay still, hoping it would pass by, whatever it was.

Fara tried to keep Slippy from going into hysterics. It wasn't easy, as she was about to go into them herself.

Pigma stood still for a moment, then decided he didn't want to wait and find out what the shaking was. As much as he would like to kill every single person down there, it wasn't worth getting killed for. Nothing was.

The rumbling grew louder, the vibration in the floor stronger. Whatever it was was coming closer.

Katt had a momentary vision of a movie she'd seen about huge underground worm-things that ate people. She panicked until she remembered that they were on the second floor.

The rumbling abruptly stopped. There was absolute silence everywhere. Fox looked at Fara, who bit her lip. Wolf growled softly.

The large double doors at the end of the room opened very slowly, and Leon walked slowly in with his head bowed and his eyes closed.

No one moved. Fox glanced at the place Pigma had been; there was no one there now. He motioned to Fara, and began crawling toward her. Leon, inexplicably, didn't seem to have seen them. If they could regroup and get back to the ship-

Leon's eyes snapped open. "McCloud." he whispered, staring straight ahead.

Fara watched Fox cry out and recoil. He fell down and cringed into fetal position. Every muscle in his body was fully tensed and beads of sweat were standing out on his forehead. She reached out for him, but the moment she did so pain flashed through her entire body. It didn't feel like burning or twisting or crushing or any other kind of pain. It was simply pain. Pure pain. She could barely keep herself from screaming.

Wolf couldn't see what was happening on the other side of the room. He'd heard Fox cry out, but that was on the other side of the pillars, and he couldn't tell what was going on. Leon was just standing there, not doing anything. So why didn't Fox do something? He shifted around to try to get a better view.

Leon turned around slowly, and looked at his commander for a long moment. Then he smiled. "Wolf. Hello." He said, in a high, strange voice, "Would you like to come watch me torture somebody?"

Wolf paused for just a moment, completely confused. Then he was overwhelmed with pain.

He looked up. Leon was walking toward him with a strange smile, as if he didn't know what a smile was and was trying to imitate it. He felt something yank him backwards and he landed hard on his spine.

"I've got a very amusing idea, Wolf." Leon said. "What if I were to fire every single one of your pain receptors at once. Wouldn't that be interesting? Here, let me show you."

Wolf gritted his teeth and determined he wouldn't make a sound. But he couldn't stand the pain, and after a few seconds he began howling desperately.

Katt bit her lip and tried to slip around to the other side of the pillar, but her foot tapped the corner with a barely audible thump. Leon's head turned to her so quickly it looked as if some invisible string had been pulled. He looked for a long second, then he suddenly seemed to see her and said, "Good evening, Ms. Monroe." His eyes became unfocused for a moment, then returned. "I believe we have some unfinished business, correct?"

Some invisible force flung her against the wall and held her there. From the neck down, it was as if she was incased in concrete.

Leon smiled his disturbing smile again, and took a step toward her.

The figure paused at the sound of gunfire from the room below. He inched forward until he came to a vent from which he could see. He saw a laser beam stab out at someone or something, but he couldn't see who was shooting who. He cursed his choice under his breath and prepared to move, when he noticed a strange vibration all through the duct. The shooter had apparently noticed it as well; he stopped firing. He paused a moment to think. He had no idea what this vibration was, but it probably wasn't good. It the least, it meant the duct he was in was unstable. Did he risk moving? Wait, something was happening. A door on the far side of the room had opened, and Powalski was coming through. What was wrong with him? He seemed to be spacing out. Was he on some kind of drug? Someone was shouting, what was going on here? This didn't make sense.

The shouting continued, Powalski was walking toward him. Had he been seen? No, there was something going on below his field of vision. Someone was thrown against the pillar, wait, was that…?

Katt was terrified, but not terrified enough to be oblivious to the air vent cover that landed behind Leon.

Leon stopped advancing when he heard the clatter. He paused, and began to turn around slowly.

He was too slow.

Falco landed behind him and kicked out at the back of his knees. Leon went sprawling, hissing in rage.

"Run!" Falco shouted to Katt.

"You're not dead?!" she shouted back, paralyzed only by astonishment now.

"Yeah, sure, whatever. Just run!"

Leon stood up very slowly, any trace of a smile completely gone. He glared at Falco, who fell to the ground in a flash of pain.

"Run!" Falco shouted again.

Katt did.

"Go!" Fox told Fara. "Take the others. I'll meet you at the ship."

"Fox, no! This is something very wrong. You shouldn't have to face this!"

"Neither should Falco." Fox said. "Don't worry, I'll make it."

Fara looked at him, her lip quivering. Then she turned to leave.

"I hope." Fox added under his breath, and attacked.

"I don't know which would be more enjoyable, Lombardi." Leon whispered, as a muscle in his face twitched, "to strangle you with my power and enjoy your fear and despair, or strangle you with my hand so I can feel you die as your throat is crushed." The veins on his neck stood out suddenly. "Decisions, decisions."

"Put him down." Fox said, clicking his blaster. "I don't how the hell you're doing this, Powalski, but I'm telling you to stop right now."

"Yes, that's the right." Leon said, laughing in a way that was just as wrong ass his smile had been. "You don't know how the hell I'm doing this. The hell is precisely how I'm doing this." Leon turned his head very slowly, and twisted the corners of his mouth into the parody of a smile again. "Would you like to watch, McCloud? I'm sure it will be very informative." His voice became distant, as if he were lost in thought. "Then I'll perform the same procedure on you. Yes, that's it." Leon clenched his fist and Falco's body convulsed.

"I said stop!" Fox shouted, and pulled the trigger.

Leon gestured with his other hand.

The blaster ripped itself out of Fox's hand and flew across the room. Fox took a step after it, but Leon pointed at him and a wave of pain knocked him to the floor.

"Now you've made me angry, McCloud. For that, I'm going to kill you the hard way." Another wave of pain hit him, and he closed his eyes. Somewhere close by, he heard Leon's breath hissing, and then felt a scaly forefinger touch his chest. Some irresistible force clamped down on his heart and began squeezing. He opened his eyes in time to see Leon's face gloating at him, then the room began to go dark. Just before everything he went black, he thought he heard someone shout something in a strange language, but he knew it was already too late.

Chapter 28

"Fly, you fools."

-J.R.R. Tolkien, _The Lord of the Rings_

Katt was very surprised when Mind came out of nowhere, pushed her way ahead of them all into the cockpit, and sat down. She didn't seem worried, but she was oddly agitated.

"Tell everyone to buckle up." She said, "We don't know when we'll be lifting off."

Slippy shifted uneasily as he sat. This had been the most nerve-straining day he'd ever been through, including the entire war and Fox's abortive rebellion. He wished he could understand what was going on.

Wolf gripped a supporting span on the wall so hard his knuckles whitened. All he wanted was to leave as quickly as possible.

Katt was staring out the window with ferocious intensity, repeating over and over "He's alive. Falco's alive."

Fara glanced at her, and frowned. _He was,_ she thought, _but is he still? Oh, please, let them be all right._

They continued to wait.

"Nnrg." Said Falco as he regained consciousness. He wondered why the floor was moving.

"Are you awake? Good." Said a voice. It came from a strange squirrel wearing a black cape who had, apparently, been dragging him along by the arm. He also had Fox thrown over his shoulder. Fox was disturbingly still. "Can you walk?"

"Uh, yeah, I think. Ow, what did Leon do to me?"

"Not now. Later." The squirrel said, "We don't have much time. Come on."

Falco took a step and almost fell over. His body felt quite literally as if it were dead. He pushed himself up with an unpleasant tingling in his arms and legs.

"Hurry up!" called the squirrel. "Unless you want to carry him."

Falco shook off the feeling of distinct unreality and tried to follow.

"There they are!" Katt shouted, excitedly.

Fara looked quickly at Soul and Falco, coming across the roof as quickly as they could. Soul was carrying Fox on his shoulder. For a moment she feared the worst. _Stop that,_ she told herself. _Soul wouldn't have brought him if there was no hope,_ she said, and tried to force herself to believe it.

They were only ten feet away when there was a sudden explosion, and Leon floated up through a smoking hole in the roof, between Soul and the ship.

Soul dropped Fox's inert form at Falco. "Hurry! Get into the ship!"

Leon raised his hand.

Soul crouched, raising his hand and muttering under his breath.

Nothing happened. Leon's eyes widened, then he raised his other hand as well.

Soul rolled sideways, behind an air conditioner.

Leon scowled and turned his attention to Fara and Falco, who were dragging Fox into the transport.

Half a brick hit him on the back of the head.

Leon whirled, snarling outrage. The air conditioner exploded. His eyes rolled over the area behind it, but there was no one there.

"Take off!" Soul shouted as he ran past.

"But-!" began Fara.

"Don't argue! Do it!" Soul turned back to face Leon as Mind lifted.

"What do you think you're doing?" Shouted Falco, as the ship began to rise.

"Saving your lives."

Leon watched the fool who'd defied him carefully. He was trying to think of the most unpleasant way to die physically possible. Something with acid, he thought, and amputation.

Soul was standing near the edge of the building, watching him warily. Leon knew he would have to be subtle. This person, whoever he was, seemed to have some power of his own. It would probably be best to try to surprise him.

As Leon advanced, Soul retreated slowly, until he was standing at the very edge of the building. For a long moment, no one moved. Leon readied himself for a desperate fight. He loved it when his victims became desperate, it made their struggles much more entertaining. He especially loved watching the moment when they realized there was nothing they could do to escape, ever.

Then Soul smiled broadly at the former pilot, turned around, and took one more step.

Leon rushed to edge, not sure what to do. As he got there, he saw the ship rising upward and away. There was someone clinging to the side. They were wearing a black cape.

_'Well? Did they escape?'_ came his master's voice, ringing through his head.

_'Forgive me, master,'_ Leon thought back, _'I have failed you.'_

_'It does not greatly matter. They were only a few weak mercenaries and malcontents. But do not fail me again.'_

_'Of course, master.'_

For a moment, Leon considered telling his master that one of them seemed to be able to counter his power. He decided, however, that if it were truly important his master would already know it. He would not worry himself with too much thinking.

Thinking was the job of the master now.

Leon slowly turned and walked to the stairs with his eyes closed and his head bowed.

Chapter 29

"I never said it would be easy. I only said it would be the truth."

-Andy and Larry Wachowski, _The Matrix_

A battered transport rose out of Corneria's atmosphere, and turned toward the abandoned base in the asteroid field.

Wolf shifted in his seat, eventually managing to push Slippy's slumbering form off of his shoulder. He thought of letting him drop onto the floor, then changed his mind and leaned him against the wall.

"N- don't leave me flying pie moose." Slippy mumbled, then sank back into deeper sleep.

Wolf glanced over at Falco and Katt, who were sitting so close together that they could have shared seatbelts.

"Why didn't you try to find us?" Katt accused, though not too vehemently.

Falco shrugged as well as he could with both arms around Katt. "I thought I was the only one left. You were back in hell with Leon, everyone else was in some prison execution list, and Fox was dead."

"Oh yeah," Katt laughed, "I keep forgetting about that." She stopped laughing and tried to pull Falco closer (a futile attempt.) "I was so afraid, back there, that…"

"That what?"

"The first time you, well, died, I couldn't watch. I almost thought you'd been brought back just because I'd failed then. That this time I'd have to watch." She shivered. "How did Leon do that?"

"I don't know." Said Falco. "I don't know if I want to know."

"Fara, if you squeeze my paw any tighter, it's going to come off." Fox mumbled groggily.

"You're awake? Are you all right?" she said, seizing him around the chest as if she meant to shake him to health.

"I'll be fine," he assured her, begging to sit up. He winced and sank back down. "Eventually."

"I suppose you want some answers." Came Soul's voice from the shadowed end of the transport.

Fox nodded, wincing again.

Soul looked at him as if considering something. Then he said "Ah, what the heck. I've already done it right in front of the enemy." He gestured at Fox's makeshift stretcher.

Fox felt a curious vibration wash over him. After a few moments, it vanished, leaving him much the same, except-

"Hey, my bruises are gone." Fox said, feeling himself all over. "How did you-, no, never mind."

Soul didn't speak.

"Uh," Fox began, not quite knowing how to begin, "So, just what was Leon doing to us?"

Soul raised an eyebrow. "And what do we have to do with whatever the answer is?"

"Yes."

"You won't believe me."

Fox indicated his rapidly vanishing injuries. "I've had some pretty conclusive proof."

Soul sighed heavily, and sat down on the edge of an empty crate. "You've heard of the idea of alternate universes?"

"Only in movies."

"Well, it's something like that, I guess. I'm not from this world. I don't really understand it myself; you can ask Mind if you want. Anyway, a long time ago, there was a man in my world who managed to get his hands on massive power."

"Some army?"

"No, no, just power. The kind that lizard was using. He quickly assumed rule of our world, and proceeded to try to force his way into others. We stopped him, me and Mind, with some help from some other friends."

"Now that's the part I don't understand. Are you trying to tell me he's psychic or something? Or is it some kind of science?"

Soul shrugged. "That's the hardest part about trying to explain. It wasn't science, it wasn't magic. It was just power. He could make things he wanted to happen, happen, and that's all there was to it."

"I see," Fox said, nodding slowly and hoping he didn't look as puzzled as he felt. "So you killed him?"

"No. We tried, but we couldn't. The best we could manage was throwing him out of our world and closing the door behind him. Unfortunately, we overlooked something."

"What?"

"We thought we'd sealed him in, well, in wherever you are when you're between worlds. We hadn't, we'd only sealed him out of ours."

"We first realized what had happened when he invaded our world again."

"But I thought you said he was shut out."

"He was, but his soldiers weren't. See, the way this works was that he could only return to a world he'd been banished from by causing the death of those who'd banished him. Fortunately the power to banish comes with virtual immortality, so he can't just sit back and wait for them to get old and die. So what he tried to do was to take over another world, build up an army, and then send it to our world to try to take over."

"He failed?"

"Yes. The ones who'd deposed him before went to the world he'd conquered and banished him from that one, too."

"And that was you, wasn't it?" Fox said.

"Well, I don't like to brag, but…"

"So now he's here, trying to build another army? Why? Why does he need to rule your world?"

"Because his power is incomplete. He's not omnipotent yet, or we wouldn't be here right now. He's powerful, but not all-powerful. He needs to find the rest of the force he stole."

Fox rolled his eyes. "Let me guess. You again?"

"Yes." Soul smiled. "Mind and I have the rest, that's how we were able to overcome him. What he wants in the end is our deaths."

Fox was silent. He glanced at Soul for a moment, then at Fara next to him. "This is an awful lot for you to ask me to believe."

"I know, and I'm sorry I dragged you into this. If you want out, I'll more than understand."

Fox fell silent again, purposely not looking at either Soul or his wife, who was squeezing his paw again.

"Me and Mind are perfectly able to carry on on our own."

"No." Fox said, very firmly. "I may not understand this fully, but I know that my home will never be free or safe if what you're telling me is true. For the first time in my life, I have a family and am able to defend it. And I'm not backing out simply because my enemy has became powerful, confusing, or frightening.

"I made a promise to keep fighting, and that is a promise I will keep."

Soul paused for a moment, then spoke quietly. "Thank you."

Behind the transport, the sun set on Corneria. Among the asteroids, the stars became visible.

Chapter 30

"I'm just a poor boy. Nobody loves me."

-Queen, _Bohemian Rhapsody_

Wolf sat on the edge of the bed in the room he'd been given. It was anything but luxurious, but that had never bothered him before. He'd just escaped unearthly torment and inhuman slavery and was back among his childhood friends, so he had every reason to be happy, even elated.

He wasn't.

Rita hadn't been at all glad to see him. She'd begun screaming at him the moment he'd stepped out of the ship, first accusing him of letting Andross kill Bill, then of killing Bill himself. Fox tried to intervene, but all that that accomplished was to make her scream at him as well. The last thing he'd heard her say before she'd stormed out of the room was that he was only here to murder all of them.

The problem was that he didn't know if she was right or not.

His hand went involuntarily to the knife sheath clipped on the back of his belt. The dagger inside was quite small and not particularly expensive. Except for some writing on each side, it was no different from any other.

Wolf pulled his hand away as if the knife were hot. How could he even think of that? But he'd sworn to think of it, sworn to do more than just think of it.

Which was worse, to betray his oath, or betray their trust?

"You say we aren't safe here?" Fox asked.

"No. Not anymore." Mind explained. "He may not know we were at the palace with you, but he certainly knows someone was. Out here, he can sense us; we're the only living things for hundreds of miles. But if we were to move to a planet, Corneria for example-"

"I see. Then we'd better get packed." He yawned. "I'm going to try to get some sleep. Falco?"

"Yeah?"

"I will want a detailed report on why you aren't dead, but not now. I'm too tired. Wake me in four hours."

"Sure thing, boss." Falco smiled.

"Don't you get distracted now." Fox warned, as Katt walked by.

"Hey, c'mon Fox, you know me!" Falco protested.

"That's why I said it." Fox headed for the door, but halfway there he stopped. "If Ri comes to her senses, let me know."

"I will."

"Thanks. It's good to have you back."

Wolf looked up when the door opened, glad to have his thoughts interrupted.

"Are you all right in here?" asked Fox, looking around the door.

"I will be." Wolf said, "I think."

"Not if Rita has her way."

Wolf didn't laugh.

"I'm tired." Fox continued, "I'm gonna go try to get some sleep now."

"Yeah, me too, probably."

"Falco'll let you know if anything happens, okay?"

"Sure. Thanks." Wolf said, blandly.

Fox paused, "It's good to have you back," he said and turned away.

It was all Wolf could do to control himself until the door closed.

"You can do magic? Really?" Slippy said, as if he weren't sure if he was glad or frightened.

"Well," answered Soul, "I guess you could say that."

"Oh." Slippy paused "Okay." He paused again. "C-can you teach me?"

Soul was lost for a reply.

Wolf stole out into the hall and glanced toward the control room. Good, everyone was still working on something; it didn't matter what. He took a deep breath and stole down the darkened passage.

Falco set down a laser rifle many sizes larger than necessary and looked around. Slippy had left to gather computer components, Mind and Soul were off loading packaged food and other essentials, Fox and Fara were asleep, and Rita was skulking in her room refusing to pack at all.

"Finished already?" said Katt's voice, and he turned to see her push several bulging suitcases into the room.

"I've only got what I came here with." He said, indicating the gun and a couple boxes of ammo. "What's all that?"

"Well, I was only going to take a couple outfits, and maybe some shampoo, but then I thought that I wouldn't want to be caught without anything to wear, and that I couldn't afford to let them get hold of anything they could use against us…"

"Your clothes?"

"It's not like I'm making you carry them or anything, is it?" She said. "That's really all you have?"

"I was thrown over a cliff and then into a palace raid. I didn't have much chance to go shopping."

"Well then, you need practice. You can carry my bags."

"Hey, but you-"

"Thanks, honey." She said, planting a kiss on the tip of his beak.

A bar of yellow light fell across the room from the window, crossing the bed halfway up. At the far end of the room it crept up the door. For a moment the door opened and it flashed into the hallway, then returned, illuminating a pair of boots that had come in.

Wolf took a quick look around the room. Fox was lying on his back with his face turned away, and Fara was next to him with one arm flung possessively across his chest. She stirred in her sleep, and pulled Fox closer, then settled back, smiling. Wolf bit his lip, and felt his hand reach for the etched dagger on its own. For a moment, he felt as if he were standing in the corner watching himself, with no more power to stop what was happening than to stop the sun from setting. His hand closed on the hilt of the knife, and he drew it. He started to raise it over his head, but stopped again. He turned away and closed his eye, trying not to see the spot where he would have to drive the knife. Fara still had her arm across Fox's chest, he had no idea what would happen when she woke. Would he kill her too, or simply stand and stare as she screamed.

He opened his eye, and glanced at the knife blade to avoid looking at Fox asleep and defenseless. _For my worst enemy _it said. That was McCloud, of course. No, he thought desperately, not anymore. Maybe not ever.

You swore, said a grim commanding voice in his mind. You swore to do it.

"I can't." he whispered.

Somehow he managed to stagger out of the room and into the hall before collapsing.

On the bed, Fox opened one eye, smiled slightly, and closed it again.

Rita opened her door a crack and looked out. She pulled a duffel bag onto her shoulder, and picked up a suitcase beside her. She spared a glare for Wolf's firmly closed door, and then stamped briskly towards the docking bay. Her ship still worked just fine, she could go and start her own revolution. If they wanted to harbor homicidal maniacs, that was their problem. It would serve them right if, no when, Wolf did slaughter them all. Then they'd see…

A noise from behind made her turn. It was Wolf, he'd lurched against his doorframe and was breathing heavily. He went through, not bothering to close the door, and she noticed he was holding a dagger of some sort. She stole a few steps closer to watch.

Wolf sat on the edge of his bed staring at his dagger, the only possession he'd kept with him. He couldn't seem to take his eyes off of it. _For my worst enemy…_ he read, over and over. Who was that? Not Fox, certainly. What had Fox ever done to him that hadn't worked out for the best? No, that wasn't his enemy. Who had driven him from Corneria? Who had tortured him with half true doubts and half false fears for all his years on Venom? Who always failed when he needed him most? Who couldn't even get her to look at him?

Who had broken the oath?

Wolf held out at arms length. He felt perfectly calm, as if this was what was meant for him all along; as if for the first time in his life he wasn't fighting his destiny. He took a deep breath, and jerked his arm upward to his throat.

If it hadn't been for the roaring in his ears, he would have heard Rita's frightened gasp.

Wolf gritted his teeth. The blade had stopped not an inch from his neck, but he couldn't force it any further. His arm was shaking from the effort and sweat was pouring down his face, but he was a creature of instinct, and survival was the instinct in control now.

Whimpering in frustration, he pried his fingers off the knife and threw it across the room. There was nothing left of him now, his honor had gone with his oath, his mind he'd never been sure was worth having, his life he was sure to lose any day now, and his heart had been ripped out years ago. He couldn't even escape from this prison of existence.

Something tickled the fur on his face, and he realized that the fur under his right eye was soaking wet.

The other eye, though, was incapable of tears. Wolf envied it.

Rita drew back, confused. She didn't know what she thought, and it worried her.

Wolf was either a friend in need of her help, or an enemy who needed to be watched. One thing that was certain was that she had to stay nearby, if only to sound the alarm to the others.

If Wolf did try anything, she'd be waiting.

She crept away, back to her room.

Wolf rubbed the back of his neck, groaning. What had happened? He supposed he must have fallen asleep on the floor. His earlier despair had been replaced with stiffness, both of body and spirit.

The first thing he saw clearly was the dagger, still lying in the corner where he'd thrown it. He picked it up, almost reverently, and ran his finger along the letters. _For my worst enemy-_ he turned it over -_who was my best friend._

That settled it. Perhaps he was his own worst enemy, but he had never been his own best friend.

He put the knife into its sheath, and left the room.

Chapter 31

"There's someone in my head, and it's not me."

-Pink Floyd, _Dark Side of the Moon._

Emperor Victor Opprimus leaned back slightly and rested his head against the throne. He sighed and let his eyes slide closed. He loved this.

This wasn't the end of his plans, by any means. There was still much to be done, and he really should get to work doing it. He really oughtn't delay. But he loved this moment. Maybe it was a weakness, but he loved the moment when he was truly in power, and he couldn't help savoring it.

A noise to the side attracted his attention. It was Andross, slumped against the wall and gurgling softly. His clothes were in rags and his beard was tangled and matted into his hair. Victor had decided to keep him as a lesson; to the troops, of what happened to those who dared surpass him; and to himself, of what happened to those who let others surpass them. Hopefully he wouldn't become so much of a nuisance that he'd have to be removed.

Victor closed his eyes again and let his mind drift, out to the battleship where Powalski was. He felt a slight, internal shudder as his presence invaded and filled Leon's body, and detected a few, futile thrashings as Leon's soul struck blindly against it's prison walls. He opened Leon's eyes and looked out.

Admiral Ritter hadn't been thrilled when he'd been told a mercenary pilot was joining him as a member of the flagship's command crew. He'd liked the situation less and less each day that he'd spent in Powalski's company. He couldn't think how a mere mercenary could be so profoundly disturbing.

_Admiral,_ laughed Victor to himself, _if you only knew._

"I really don't know how much more of this I can take, sir." The first officer said. "He just stands there all day, and when he does snap out of it he says the most disturbing things I've ever heard."

"That's insubordinate, number one." The admiral said stiffly. "Though I can't help agreeing."

"Isn't there something we can do? Even," the officer glanced sideways "–unofficially?"

"Lower your voice." Ritter said, "I'd love to take care of him. Permanently. But he's… not normal."

"What do you mean?"

"I found him hanging around the brig a week ago. The next day half the prisoners had gone mad, and half of those who were left died of various internal injuries within the next three days."

"He tortured them?"

"I don't know."

"What? Why not?"

"I reviewed the security tapes, and looked over every move Powalski made."

"And?"

"He never touched a single one of those people. He never even went into the cells. He just stood outside and looked at them."

The first officer turned very slowly and looked at him. "What did you say?" he asked, in a voice that meant he'd heard perfectly.

"He could never have touched those people." Admiral Ritter said, "But somehow he killed them."

 "Ow!" Katt said, tripping over yet another case of ammunition.

"Oh, yeah, you gotta watch out for those." called Falco from the next room.

"Watch out for those?" She shouted back, "Just how many of these things have you got in here?"

"Well, I wasn't really sure how much I'd need when I got this place, and I figured I'd get killed when I went into the palace, so I didn't bother observing any limits, or anything," Falco explained, sounding puzzled. "Just watch out for the grenades in the closet."

She took her hand off the closet doorknob as if it had bitten her.

"Falco," Fox said, dropping a suitcase of Fara's clothes onto the floor, "there's a problem."

"What?"

"As convenient as it is that you had this place already-"

"Yeah,"

"And as much as all of us, especially Wolf, are glad it's right above a bar-"

"Yeah,"

"There's a serious problem."

"What?"

"We've only got one bed."

There was an uncomfortable silence.

"Uh, so what do we do?" Falco said.

There was another silence.

"Son of a…" Falco muttered, trying to make himself comfortable on the floor.

On the couch, Wolf snored. Loudly.

The admiral was talking with some officer; they were both turned away from him. Victor smiled with Leon's mouth.

"Is something wrong, gentlemen?" Leon hissed suddenly, not two inches behind them.

The first officer spun and gasped at Leon for a few seconds. Victor ignored him. The admiral's reaction was what was important. Ritter had gripped the windowsill so hard that his knuckles were whitening. Now he was purposefully looking the other way. Trying to conceal his fear. Futile. Victor could smell it. His reaction was perfect.

"I've noticed you don't seem to enjoy my company." Victor said through Leon's mouth. "Why is that, do you think?"

Ritter glanced at him for a moment, then looked away again.

"You know I'm different. I can see it in your eyes." Leon hissed, "The way you aren't sure where to look or what do when I'm in the same room. Everyone does that to me. You do it consciously." The lizard laughed dryly, "But if they could only see… then they would understand."

"Understand what?" Ritter asked, almost curious in spite of himself.

Leon looked him straight in the eyes and began breathing heavily. "Everything." He whispered. "I'm free from the prison that is all you know. The darkness is alive and throbs with fire." Leon tilted his head to one side "I feel things I've never even imagined."

"What do you feel?" Ritter asked, unconsciously dropping his voice to a whisper.

"Power." Victor hissed through Leon's teeth. "Beyond anything you've ever dreamed. I was like you once, you know. Weak, seeing nothing but the narrow slit of a world in front of my face," Leon's eyes blazed, "but I was changed."

Ritter closed his eyes as hard as he could. He was sure that what Powalski was spouting was just deranged nonsense. Perhaps if he ignored him he would go away.

"I was changed," Leon's voice droned, "As others could be changed, too."

Even though his eyes were tightly closed, Ritter could feel Leon's eyes boring into him. He had to be talking nonsense. But what if he wasn't?

Ritter opened his eyes again and looked at Leon for a long moment. "What do I have to do?"

Chapter 32

Suddenly, desire took him by the throat. Everything else Mark had ever felt or wanted appeared as mere milk and water; toys for children. The infinite attracting of the dark thing sucked all other passions into itself.

-C.S. Lewis, _That Hideous Strenth._

Fox looked up when the door as the roof rocked open. It's hinges needed oil and it squeaked. "How did it go?"

"Not bad." Wolf answered. "We got enough ammunition to make a stand here, if we need to, plus a few interesting toys that will come in very handy if we raid the palace again."

"When we raid the palace again," Fox said, looking back at the sunset.

Wolf was silent for a long moment. "You know, back then they used to say I was the one who was crazy."

"They would have been right, back then." Fox sighed. "But they're gone. C'mon, let's see how Falco did with the food supplies."

Admiral Ritter paced uneasily in the palace's lobby. What was he doing here? Why had he listened to Powalski? Why wasn't he with the fleet? That mission had been just the sort of flashy, effective assignment his career needed. And he had half a mind to-

"Admiral Ritter? Follow me please."

"How did you know my name?" He asked the nondescript soldier. "I wasn't announced, I came here incognito…"

"Follow me please."

"But nobody should know I'm here!"

"Follow me please."

The soldier turned and began walked towards a door on the far wall. After looking around for a moment to see that no one was watching, Ritter followed him.

"Morning ma'am." Alexis said, not looking up from his screen and keyboard.

"What have we got today Alex?" Trine asked, stifling a yawn.

"Nothing much. Imperial fleet's passing through our airspace, but that's nothing new. We've ordered all activities underground till they leave."

"Has McCloud been bugging us again?"

"Nope. It's funny, though…"

"Hmm?"

Alex punched a few buttons. "We hacked a couple of reports. There's not much to go on, but apparently prisoners 8-4H1 and 5-MR3, that's Slippy Toad and Peppy Hare, are now classified deceased."

"They're dead? Why?"

"Not necessarily. If they'd been killed, they'd be classified 'executed,' right? No, 'deceased' is what they say when they don't want to lose face in front of the soldiers."

"Escaped."

"Or been rescued." Alex looked up for a moment. "I wonder if we underestimated McCloud."

"It never hurts to underestimate the famous," she grunted. "Let me see the fleet."

Alex tapped on his keyboard, and the screen switched to a view from an orbital satellite. A battlecruiser was lumbering slowly past, with several invader class ships in its wake.

"That's strange." She muttered as Alexis continued banging on the computer. "They don't seem to be passing."

"What?"

"No. They aren't passing," she repeated, her voice suddenly rising, "They're landing."

Alex stopped typing.

Admiral Ritter fumed, mostly to cover up his growing uneasiness.

He'd been led into a small, ill lit, metal-plated room, without any windows, and instructed to kneel in the center of the floor. Objections and questions had been met alike with a simple repetition of the demand that he kneel in the center of the floor. Grumbling, he finally did so, intending to say something very witty and scathing. Before he'd thought of what to say, the soldier left, letting the door slam behind him.

Ritter's first reaction was to think that he'd been imprisoned for, well, something. Maybe they thought he was some kind of traitor, or was ignoring orders. Perhaps a more powerful officer had wanted him out of the way? But then, why send a lunatic mercenary to lure him in? Why demand that he kneel? Wouldn't it be simpler to arrest him in the usual fashion? That was when the lights went out.

And so he was left alone, in a small, dark room, and he still didn't know what the hell Powalski had been talking about.

"Alan Ritter." Said a voice suddenly. Funny, Ritter thought, he hadn't noticed an intercom when the lights were on. "Do wish to serve your emperor perfectly?"

"What?" Ritter asked the darkness.

There was no answer.

"Well, uh, yes, of course I do." Ritter said, hoping he hadn't delayed too long.

"Do you wish to be given power?" the voice asked. It didn't sound like it was coming from an intercom. But there couldn't be anyone else in the room, could there?

"Yes." Ritter said, slowly, straining his eyes in the darkness.

"So be it." said the voice.

And the universe went mad.

His arms suddenly snapped out straight at his sides, as if someone had grabbed his wrists and yanked. He heard something like a huge drum, or maybe a distant explosion, and then a wave of some force passed over him. It felt like a biting wind full of sand, except that it went through his body and struck inside of him as well. It would have knocked him over, except that his body seemed suddenly unmovable.

He couldn't tell how long the wind went on, but suddenly there was a high, thin, ringing sound, like a harpstring breaking, or a flute being played too high and too loud. As soon as it reached him the dark wind redoubled its strength. Most of his clothes were torn away. Sudden gashes were ripped across his chest and arms; it felt as if they'd come from inside his body. The ringing grew louder, setting his teeth on edge and running through his bone, but somehow he could hear very distinctly the sound of his blood hitting the floor.

Ritter could no longer tell whether his eyes were open or shut. But he thought he could vaguely see something like fire or light running across his skin. But if it was fire, it didn't hurt. The pain was fading; his whole body was going numb. If it was light, it illuminated nothing, and the room seemed to be growing darker than ever. 

Leon stood in the center of what had once been the rebel control room with his head bowed, apparently looking at nothing. The roar of blasters and high explosive had by now subsided into the rustle of flames and the moans of the dying. His master's soldiers, under his command, still wandered the gutted underground bunker, occasionally wiping out yet another survivor. Their deaths quivered wonderfully on the edge of his perceptions, he could taste their pain and grief.

It was delicious.

He eventually raised his eyes to the wall, and began studying the consoles that still flickered there. Some were blasted out, more were simply dead, but a few still glowed.

Over one such the inert form of an elderly badger was slumped. He shoved her aside, revealing a hastily entered message on the screen.

"MCLOUD. UNDER HEAVY ATTACK. CAN'T HOLD OUT. LIZARD FROM STARWOLF DID IT. SORRY I DOUBTED YOU. HELP PLEASE. TRINE."

Leon paused for a moment. It would not be strictly true to say that he was thinking. Something which had been substituted for his consciousness went spinning through the memories of what Leon had been, until it came up with the name McCloud. What it found gave it pause.

The thing that had been Leon decided to consult its master.

Emperor Opprimus felt the mental touch like a cold hand on the back of his neck. He closed his eyes and let himself drift.

_Yes?_ He thought.

_I think I have found something important, master._

Leon knew there was nothing more that he needed to do. His Master would rip the knowledge from his mind with or without his consent. The experience was excruciatingly painful, more so when he resisted.

Leon tried to resist as much as possible.

Rhea Sydney, an Imperial soldier, was about to report to her commanding officer about the prisoners that had been taken. She had just entered the room when she saw him stiffen as though an electric charge had been applied to his tail. He gasped, the veins on his neck stood out, and he started twitching spasmodically. His hands shot up to the sides of his head, which he gripped so hard that his claws drew blood. He suddenly collapsed to his knees and began breathing heavily. His body relaxed and a beautifully happy look spread slowly across his face. So did a few tears. Red ones.

Rhea decided to submit her report in writing.

"It happened again."

"You felt it too?"

"Very obviously."

"And I'm supposed to be the clairvoyant one."

"Where is he now?"

"Out in the city. Heading for the river."

"Why would he go there?"

"I don't know."

"Yet."

"Yes."

A government car pulled up in front of the Riverside Cemetery in Corneria city, and a single figure got out. He indicated to the driver to move on, and the car left.

The wrought iron gates were barred, chained, and locked. The figure held out his hand, and they flew open with a dull thud.

Alan Ritter stood alone in front of a large gravestone.

Victor Opprimus read the inscription through his eyes, and smiled.

Chapter 33

"If charnel houses and graves send those that we bury back, our monuments shall be maws of kites."

-Shakespere, _MacBeth_.

"Rita, I need to talk to you." Wolf said quietly.

"I do not need to talk to you, though." She answered coldly, and got up to leave.

"Rita, what's wrong?" Wolf shouted, managing to squeeze into the door ahead of her. "I'm sorry I fought for Venom, but I can't change the past. The only thing I can do is try to fix it, and that's what I'm doing. So why are you still shunning me?"

"My attitude towards you has nothing to do with Venom." Rita said, and shoved past him. She pulled up short when he grabbed her by the elbow. "What are you trying, O'Donnell?"

"I'm trying to get you to listen."

"It won't work."

Wolf didn't answer.

"Do really think I've forgotten what happened back in the academy? What you tried to do to me? Betraying us to Venom was bad, but that wasn't what made me hate you."

"I'm sorry about… about that. I was drunk out of my mind, and I'd been in love with you for years…"

For a while, neither of them spoke. "I'm sorry," Rita said, quietly but firmly, "but, like you said, I can't change the past."

"I'm not asking you to change it. I'm asking you to forget it."

She didn't answer.

"What do I have to do to prove I love you?" He called after her.

"Die. Like he did." She said over her shoulder, and slammed the door shut.

Ritter didn't know it, but he was trembling.

He was standing on a small lump of bare ground in the cemetery. It was only bare because it was too near the water to dig up. It would have been a good spot for a picnic or some other carefree recreation, had it not been in a graveyard.

It was too be used for another purpose tonight.

_Master,_ Ritter heard his voice calling into the darkness and echoing in the solitude, _all is ready._

There were no flashes, no pyrotechnics. No boiling, festering darkness. This was a subtler power, perhaps all the stronger for that. A passerby, had there been any, would not have seen anything unusual. He would have felt it. The power was wet and slimy, it clung and slid over the skin like the brush of some diseased membrane, it had the fell strength of tentacled creatures that live in lightless caverns.

It was undeniably effective.

Ritter's dark silhouette was joined another.

Victor sat in the Imperial throne, concentrating. It had been a long time since he'd done anything like this and he was out of practice. It was one thing to will himself into the body and mind of someone like Powalski or Ritter. The body sustained itself; all one had to do was suppress the soul and replace it with your own commands. The mind did all the work of compensating and inventing new personalities to keep the body under control and running.

It was much harder when the body was separated from the soul. Though there was no soul to suppress, one's concentration was divided among a thousand things; trying to perceive through decaying and faulty senses, moving the limbs by sheer willpower. The very stiffness of the body had to be resisted like a rapid current. He would vastly prefer working solely with the living. But for this mission, this was unquestionably the best method. This way, he had an agent that could not be resisted.

"What the- Uh, Fox, you might want to take a look at this." Slippy called, nervously. "We're getting some kind of signal."

"A trace?" Fox asked, looking at the screen over Slippy's shoulder.

"Nuh uh. It's not recycling back or looped. Hmm, lemme try analyzing the data." The screen flashed, then disappeared under a cascade of zeros and ones.

"Whassup?" Falco said. "And what's all that?"

"Incoming signal." Fox explained. "Slip says it might be a trace, so he's analyzing it."

"That's not a trace."

"What?" Slippy said, indignantly, coming out of his code-induced trance. "How would you know?"

"Because it's activated the com," said Falco, pointing. "See?"

There was a small pause.

"Just push that button, there, the one that's flashing."  Falco explained.

Another pause. Fox finally reached down and pressed the button on the small communication screen.

"-SORRY I UNDERESTIMATED YOU. TRINE. HERE IS WHAT YOU WANTED." It printed a list of lists; names and locations of rebel organizations, contact information, suppliers, corrupt officials.

Everything you'd need to now to engineer a system-wide revolution.

Falco looked smug. Slippy turned greener.

"Get everyone together," ordered Fox, "It's time for a council of war."

"I've got it, sir. We've found an unauthorized signal in the slums, we're sure it's them."

Admiral Ritter moaned softly in response.

The armored car slowed to a stop. The soldiers inside raised their guns and stood up.

_No!_ thundered the new Emperor's voice in Ritter's head.

"No." whispered the Admiral. "I will be going in."

"Alone, sir?" asked one soldier, in the front rank.

Ritter looked at him for a long moment, then his eyes narrowed.

The soldier's neck snapped, and he fell to the ground.

"No, not alone." Ritter said. "But not with you."

Chapter 34

Carry on, my wayward son,

There'll be peace when you are done.

Lay your weary head to rest

Don't you cry no more.

-Kansas, _Carry On Wayward Son._

The landlord of the building where Fox and the others were staying, also the head of an organized crime cartel, was known only as Tom, or Mr. Tom to those he wanted to intimidate. He preferred it that way. It cut down on inconveniences, such as police entanglements or relatives asking for money. If he had had to choose between the two, he would have chosen the police.

He had more than a suspicion as to who it was that was living in the top two floors. He'd recognized a few of them, and his speculations had been confirmed, when Wolf and Falco had come down to the bar and gotten very drunk. Before they'd fallen asleep, they'd been talkative enough.

Mr. Tom had decided it was wise to keep his mouth shut, even the rebels didn't. First, the old government had been much easier to get around than this one. Second, if they were caught, he could always say he hadn't known, and who would there be to contradict him?

And third, he'd been paid.

Though he was affected by the momentous events that later would lead him to the top of Corneria's crime empire and then to prison, the night they really started he was asleep in bed.

He even slept with his mouth shut.

Soul rubbed his eyes, yawned, and leaned back. "I hope I don't ever to do that again."

"What do you mean?" asked Slippy, incredulously, "It was fun!"

The squirrel looked at him for a long time, then blinked. "Relaying the same message to over a hundred locations for more than an hour is not my idea of a wild party."

"You're just saying that because you don't understand technology." Slippy said, looking at his computer screen the way Fara looked at Fox.

Soul shook his head wearily.

"Are you guys done?" Fox asked, poking his head around the doorway.

"Ask Mr. Wizard over there." groaned Soul.

"All done." Slippy said, ignoring him. "And I'm beat. I'm going to bed."

"Uh, wasn't Mind helping you with that, too?"

"She was." Soul said, looking in vain for some piece of furniture to collapse onto. "But it's her shift on the com."

"Oh yeah. It's almost my turn." Fox said. "Where's Wolf, by the way?"

"Oh, he left a while back. He said he was going for a walk."

"A walk? He's a wanted criminal?! What does he think he's doing?"

"Well, I'll go find him if you want." Soul said. "Just what do you want, Fox?"

"Huh?"

"What are you fighting for? You've got the base for the best rebellion I've ever seen—and I've seen more than my share of rebellions—you've got a hand-picked band of loyal and able fighters, you're within striking distance of the nerve center of the tyranny you've been fighting all your life, and you're content to stay in a apartment swapping rumors with other outlaws? Why? Want do you want?"

"Wha? Well, I-"

"Hmm. Yeah, that's what I thought."

"What do you mean?"

"Never mind. I'm gonna go find Wolf."

"Uh, yeah." Fox said, still confused. "Thanks. If he gets caught, then it's over. He knows who we are and where we're hiding. I'll send Mind off the other way."

"No problem." said Soul, pulling on his cloak. "After the last couple of hours, I might even find it exciting."

Fox was not aware that Victor already knew who he was and where he was hiding.

It would not have helped much if he had.

As Soul turned the corner and set out after Wolf, Ritter was forcing open the tenement's door. The front room was deserted, as were the stairs.

The only thing out of the ordinary was Ritter's sole, silent companion.

Victor, seeing the room through Ritter's eyes, gave a slight start. There were traces of a familiar presence here. A presence he'd been dreading. But it was faint, very faint. Perhaps only the power of an agent. Apparently his adversaries had also decided to work through others. That was not what he would have expected.

But then, the unexpected is just the weapon they would use against him.

_Very well._ Victor mused. _I use agents, and they use agents. Agents can be destroyed._

_We will see whose are more powerful._

Fox was sitting alone in front of the com screen. At present, it showed only static, but you never knew when some tiny rebel nucleus might call. Not for help, you couldn't send that over a transmitter, but for hope.

Somewhere in the building, a door creaked open.

Fox stifled a yawn and flexed his shoulders. What he wanted now, more than anything else, was to go back to bed. Fara would be waiting, half asleep, and she'd curl up against his chest as he got under the blanket. And someday there's be kits, hopefully a lot. That made him think of his only childhood, and Rita, and Wolf, and Bill, who didn't even get a grave, and his father, who had a five thousand credit headstone. Fox grinned ruefully at the though of how James would have laughed about spending five thousand credits on a gravestone.

He missed that laugh.

Ritter pushed open the topmost door. It had been left unlocked for some reason.

He looked around the darkened hall for a moment, then nodded to his companion. There was no need to tell him what to do. They were both under the master's control, and they would both do what was required of them.

The other figure stepped forward slowly, with a strange jerking motion. As it moved it made a dry rustling, like sandpaper being rubbed against stone. Its legs and arms drooped as if it were carrying heavy weights. In places the fur was thin, even gone, and you could see through to the skin, which was shriveled and ripped in places. The face was the worst; the features had hardened and discolored into what resembled, when seen with the empty eye sockets, a thick wooden mask.

Fox heard the door open behind him, and turned warily to look. You couldn't be too careful. "Soul?" he said. "Is that you?"

There was no answer.

The door was half open, and blocked the light in such a way that Fox couldn't see who was standing there. He saw a figure about his height, but beyond that he couldn't tell who it was or what they looked like.

"Come out of there." He said, in a voice that could be interpreted as either threatening or polite. One hand went to the blaster at his hip.

There was a strangely wet noise, like a towel being dragged over the floor, and the form in the shadows advanced.

The blaster fell from his paw.

"Father." Said Fox.

Chapter 35

Darth Vader: I am your father.

-_Star Wars_

Wolf turned around from where he had watched the sun set. The moon was just visible on the opposite horizon. It was almost, but not quite, full. He watched it rise pensively, lost in indecision. _What the hell_, Wolf thought, _I don't care if they do hear me._ He closed his eyes and tilted back his head.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Said Soul.

Wolf caught his breath, and turned around. "What are you doing here?"

"Fox sent me to find you. C'mon." He started across the street.

"Don't know why he bothers," Wolf muttered, "The only one who likes me is Falco, and that's just because I go drinking with him. In fact-"

Soul wasn't listening. He'd stopped in the middle of the road. "Hey, listen!"

"What?" asked Wolf. "What is it?"

"Shhh!"

They stood in silence for a moment.

"Is that?-" Soul began, narrowing his eyes, "But that was… Oh, crap!" and he took off running.

Wolf followed him. This was the strangest rebellion he'd ever been in.

"What happened?" Fox was saying. "What's going on?"

The form's mouth opened. No words came out, only a breathy hiss, but Fox heard plainly; "My son. It's been so long."

"I- I know." Fox said.

The thing stepped closer. "I've missed you, son."

"So have I."

There seemed to be some kind of mist or fog gathering around the corners of Fox's eyes. The thing looked more and more like his father as it thickened.

"I wanted so badly to talk to you." It said.

"Father…" Fox said. His body felt suddenly lighter, as if he were falling.

"Come here, son." His father said, stepping still closer. "Let me see you."

Fox found he couldn't seem to move at all. He didn't care.

His father reached out to him.

The thing stretched out its hand toward his throat.

Ritter pushed open the door, drew a knife and stepped in. Then he stopped.

Alan's transformation was by no means the same as Leon's. It differed just as much as they did. Where Leon's soul had been torn open and dismembered, Ritter's had been petrified. That was why Victor had chosen him for this mission, not only was he more unobtrusive, but he could better sense things Leon would have missed. Like other sources of power.

There was power approaching now. It resembled his master's, but also differed subtly.

Victor felt it too. _Get out of there,_ he reverberated.

Quickly, Ritter dropped the knife, and caught up a length of cord. He acted not in fear of the approaching power, but in fear of his master.

A few moments later he was dropping out of the window with Fara, firmly tied and gagged, slung over his shoulder.

"I don't understand." Fox said vaguely, blinking his eyes. He suddenly felt very sleepy.

"You don't need to, son." Whispered his father, holding out a hand. "You don't need to worry about anything ever again."

Fox started to take a step forward.

"Stop!" shouted James's voice, from behind him.

"Come here." Commanded his father.

Soul shouted something, and charged into the room.

The thing that had looked like his father froze. It stood for a moment, then toppled face forward. Soul pulled out a blaster and shot it through the head.

Fox blinked, as if he'd just woken up. "Wha- what happened?" he asked slowly, as if he had trouble remembering the words.

In answer, Soul turned the thing over with the tip of his boot. Its head had been shattered by the blaster, and any resemblance to James McCloud was gone.

"It wasn't, my-" Fox began.

"It could have been." Soul answered, anticipating the question. "It doesn't matter what body is used. He could make it look like your great aunt Mildred if he thought it would work best."

Fox shuddered and was silent.

"Where's the other- oh no. Come here, quickly!" called Mind.

They left the room. Fox was the last out. As he went, he looked one last time at the thing on the floor.

In the palace, Victor's eyes snapped open.

Whatever agent they had sent to find him was powerful indeed. It was time to change tactics. Power worked best if tempered with strategy.

If you couldn't destroy your enemies outright, you made them come to you. And when you were strongest and they were weakest, you attacked.

Victor began to get up, but was stopped by a sudden twinge of pain in his right hand.

The back of it was bleeding.

Chapter 36

A gentle rain falls softly on my weary eyes

As if to hide a lonely tear.

My life will be forever autumn

Now you're not here.

-Justin Hayward, _Forever Autumn_

Fox's emotional wrenches of that night were not over.

The blankets on the bed were relatively undisturbed, there were really no signs of a struggle. The window was broken, not just the glass but the whole frame, as if by the impact of a wreaking ball.

Fara was gone.

Behind him, he could vaguely hear Wolf breathing heavily. Rita was looking worried. Mind and Soul were talking about something. Katt and Slippy had gotten out of bed and were standing in the back trying to hear what was going on.

"Fox, are you alright?" asked Falco, only half dressed. He'd apparently been asleep as well.

"No." answered Fox, still staring at the window. "No I'm not."

A soft wind rose slowly through the window, ruffling Fox's fur.

_He'd only been a kit when his mother was taken from him._

His sister opened her mouth as if to say something, but she seemed too afraid to do so. He obviously wasn't the only one thinking about the family they'd lost.

His father had never been the same afterward. In public, he'd become hard, cold, emotionless. In private he was distant and half apologetic.

James had sworn to avenge his wife.

Mind was talking rapidly to Falco, Katt and Slippy. Every so often she would glance over her shoulder at the broken windowframe. Soul was staring at Fox without comment.

It had been during his first holiday from the Academy. On the day before going back to school, Fox had spent the whole day with his father. They'd wandered all over the city without any specific destination, just talking. For the first time in years Fox felt as if his Father wasn't trying to make up to him, as if their family had never been broken.

_He went to sleep that night happier than he'd been in years._

_That had been the last time he'd ever saw his father alive._

"No more." Fox said, unaware he'd spoken aloud. "No more."

Everyone else stopped talking.

"Slippy get on the com to all the resistance cells you contacted. I want every one of them fighting within two hours."

"Two hours?" Slippy spluttered, "Fox, what are talking-?"

"Falco, Katt," Fox continued, "Get to the planes. Get airborne and keep off the Venom ships. If it isn't a rebel, I don't want it to land."

Falco blinked, then nodded. Katt bit her lip.

"Wolf, Ri, get any gear you need."

"For what?" Rita asked.

"You're coming with me to the palace. So are you two." Fox paused. "That's just what you want, isn't it? You've set this up from the beginning."

"No." Mind shook her head, "We're here to prevent a reckless and evil man from interfering any more with the lives of the innocent. He started it, we want to finish it."

"Fine. As long as I can count on your help." Fox turned back to the window, and when he spoke again his voice seemed oddly strained. "All my life, I've been powerless to protect those I love from being victims. Mom, Dad, Bill, Peppy, my home, my country. No more." His voice became perfectly level again. "Not Fara."

Soul and Falco watched Fox leave the room. Falco looked confused, Soul looked impressed and somehow triumphant, as if some guess he had made had been right.

Falco broke the silence, "What just happened?"

"He decided what it is he wants." Soul answered.

Fox went up to the roof a few minutes later. All the preparations were progressing, there was nothing left for him to do but wait, and hope Fara wasn't already dead.

He stopped holding in the tears.

Chapter 37

"Come!" said Aragorn, "This is the hour when we draw swords together."

-J.R.R. Tolkein, _The Lord of the Rings_

"Dad!" Amy called, "there's a message for you!"

"Who's it from?" asked the leader of the MacBeth rebellion.

Amy's jaw dropped. "Fox McCloud? I thought he was dead!"

Joel didn't answer. He was reading the message with a mixture of excitement and apprehension. "Get me a line to Zoness." He said, without taking his eyes of the monitor.

Natasha, affectionately known as 'lady' by the rebels under her command, was in a similar state of perplexity for a similar reason.

The com button flashed and she pressed it absently. "Uh, hello?"

"It's Joel, on MacBeth." Said the com. "Are you reading this?"

"Yes." She answered. She didn't have to ask what 'this' was.

Neither one said anything for a long moment. "What do we do?" Natasha asked.

"Call the others, I suppose." Joel answered.

Jason, on Aquas, was too excited to talk coherently.

"Whoa, Joel, it's you. Did you get the message? What do we do now? I've got forty units out in the field, should I call them back in or what? I think we should start with bombing the communications depos. Oh, but then we couldn't talk to eachother. Ok, we'll take over the communications depos. How about that? Do you think they expect us? No they must not, or McCloud wouldn't have told us to move. I've got to get in touch with Julia, she runs the other group here. Do you think she already knows? I hope not, I'd love to surprise her with something like this." He went on talking, not realizing he had paced too far away from the com unit to be heard.

"I think we can assume he knows." Joel said dryly.

"Agreed." Came the answer from Zoness.

Ranulf shifted in his the seat of his fighter. The troop convoy should be passing through their sector within an hour, but until then there was nothing to do but wait, running only essential systems to avoid detection. The aim was to look like just another piece of the rubble and debris that always drifted freely in sector Z.

The console of his plane beeped, and a message popped up.

"What's up, boss?" signaled one of the pilots.

Ranulf didn't answer immediately.

"Boss?"

"Nothing." He said. "The job's gotten a little bigger, that's all."

"Caleb, c'mere." Valerian called.

"What?"

"There's a message."

"What's it say? To all rebel groups in- Huh? What? They can't mean now, can they?"

"I dunno." Valerian said, tapping the com. "I'm online with Aquas now."

"They can't be serious. Is this right?" asked Caleb, "What do they say?"

"Nothing yet. Oh hang on. Titanaia here, yeah, uh huh-"

Caleb sat on the floor waiting

"Yeah. Yeah." Valerian lowered the com. "They got the same deal."

Caleb digested this for a moment. "What are they gonna do about it?"

"Attack."

Radnor was sitting in an overgrown alcove on top of a ruined, and seemingly abandoned, military compound. He was holding a laser rifle across his knees, but the real reason he was there was to watch the sunset. Solar dying over the Fortunan Jungle was a sight no other planet could quite equal.

"Uh, honey?" called Regina.

"Hmm?" he answered.

"We got a message." Answered his wife. "There's a system wide attack being coordinated."

"When?"

"Now."

Radnor turned back to the sunset. The red was deepening to a soft purple, and the first stars were becoming visible.

"And the girls?"

"I told them to stay in the bunker until we get back."

Radnor cocked the rifle, then slung it over his shoulder. "So. It has begun."

He turned his back on the sunset, and climbed down into the base.

Aya slumped into a chair. What she wanted most at the moment was a shower and then to go to bed. She was dead tired and covered with smoke, concrete dust, not to mention sediment from Venom's oily atmosphere. At least the bombing had gone well. Nobody would be using that railroad for quite a while. Especially not troops.

She switched on the computer, and was flooded with messages.

After reading for a moment, she switched the computer off again.

She was going to need more bombs.

"Damn!" Erastus shouted.

"Language." said his brother.

"Yes it is." He grumbled, leaning on the com, and unintentionally pressing the receive button.

"-come in Katina. Katina do you read me?" Joel shouted. "They aren't answering."

"Uh, reading you." Erastus said, confusedly.

"Oh. Ok. Did you get the message?"

"Message? No, we didn't, because our stupid computer died." Bowen snarled, aiming a kick at it.

It hummed, then started up. The screened filled with letters.

TO ALL REBEL LEADERS OF THE LYLAT SYSTEM,

The time has come to strike. This evening, we will be attacking the imperial palace on Corneria. Even if we die, almost all troops will certainly be recalled. The more places that are attacked simultaneously, the more places they will be recalled to, the greater our chances. Even if one planet is freed, it will be worth it.

WE ATTACK TONIGHT.     

-Fox McCloud.

Erastus and Bowen stood looking at the message for a long moment. Then the older brother spoke.

"Why," said Erastus, "Are we always the last ones to know about these things?"

Fara woke up with head spinning and her mouth full of cloth. She realized very quickly that she wasn't in bed, mostly because her bed was not made of cement. She tried to call out for help, and perceived she was gagged. She tried to undo the gag, and perceived she was bound. She looked around, perceived she was in a cell, and that Leon was standing on the other side of the bars, watching her. He was holding his head to one side, like a bird or a small child, and his hands were folded as if he were praying. But the tendons standing out on his arms showed that his hands were clenched much too tightly for that.

"Good evening, Ms. Phoenix," said Leon, sounding for a moment like his old self, "or should I say Mrs. McCloud?"

Fox was unconscious of that the rebels across the system were beginning to act on his orders. He didn't care about the confusion he'd cast on the imperial military. He ignored the idea of several billion inhabitants of Lylat rising up to strike their enemies.

All that mattered was that he was going to Fara.

"Falco here," buzzed his com, "Air unit ready."

"Everything clear at the front entrance." Rita said.

"We're ready up here." acknowledged Soul from the roof.

Fox nodded as he dropped into the air conditioner. "Let's do this. One last time."

He climbed into a duct and began crawling.


End file.
